After Shen Yuming went on his business trip, Yu Yan took a five-day vacation. On the fifth morning, he clocked in on his phone at 9 AM, then slept until 11 AM.

Jian Ran had a meal at home, then had the driver take him to the filming set.

He Zhiyu had already arrived at the set. He was playing the male lead in a fantasy drama called Immortal Journey. The filming location was in an outdoor film city, where many sets were specially constructed, and the cost was enormous.

Though Yu Yan was just visiting, he still informed the director and He Zhiyu in advance.

He Zhiyu’s costume for the drama was impressive. His black embroidered robe, paired with a waist belt, showcased his body in the most flattering way.

As soon as Yu Yan saw him, He Zhiyu threw his arm around his shoulder, forcefully introducing him to the director and several of the main actors.

Because everyone knew Yu Yan’s status, they greeted him politely.

After the rounds of introductions, He Zhiyu pulled him aside. “Bro, you really have some skill! My dad didn’t get anyone to snatch this role away from you, I guess I’ve gotten lucky. By the way, have you written your movie review yet? You’re the only one left.”

“Almost, I’m still brainstorming,” Yu Yan replied vaguely.

“I didn’t expect you to take it so seriously,” He Zhiyu said, nodding with a touched expression, pulling him closer. “From now on, you’re my brother by another mother. We may not be born on the same day, same month, same year, but we’ll…”

Yu Yan shot him a sideways glance. “Avoid the omen!”

He Zhiyu swiftly changed the topic, “But we’ll be rich on the same day, same month, same year!”

Standing next to He Zhiyu, Yu Yan felt even more introverted than usual.

He asked softly, “How’s that acting training class going?”

Though He Zhiyu looked good, his acting skills weren’t on par with Jian Ran’s. That was why Yu Yan insisted on sending him to the acting training class.

“I’m an outstanding student there, got a certificate,” He Zhiyu said with a proud look. “Didn’t you see it in my WeChat Moments?”

Yu Yan froze for a moment. He hadn’t seen it.

The problem was that He Zhiyu posted so much on his WeChat Moments—about 20 posts a day. The content was comparable to his real life: luxury cars, expensive watches, or his latest achievements.

“Let me check now.”

Under He Zhiyu’s persistent gaze, Yu Yan couldn’t withstand the pressure and opened his WeChat Moments.

“Which post?”

“The one from late October.”

After a few minutes of scrolling, Yu Yan finally found the post. It was a collage of nine photos.

He Zhiyu had indeed received an award from the training class, and he was even standing in the center of the group photo.

Others’ certificates were rolled up and tied with red silk, but He Zhiyu’s certificate was unfolded, with an air of arrogance.

“…Not bad.”

After a few minutes, Yu Yan finally made his evaluation.

Just as he was about to close the app, someone grabbed his wrist.

“Aren’t you going to like or comment on it?”

Yu Yan: “…”

He reluctantly liked the post and gave a thumbs-up in the comments.

He was thankful that He Zhiyu didn’t demand that he like or comment on every post, or he’d have to spend the whole day here.

“Hey, let me show you the square step I learned in the training class. It’s got some flair!”

He Zhiyu started demonstrating the move with great enthusiasm.

No wonder Yu Yan had felt that He Zhiyu’s walk looked a bit odd earlier. It turned out he was showing off the new square step, and because Yu Yan hadn’t noticed it, he decided to bring it up.

“Not bad. Keep up the good work with your acting,” Yu Yan nodded in approval.

Ten minutes later, it was He Zhiyu’s turn to shoot. The director called for him.

Yu Yan let out an almost imperceptible sigh of relief and sat down in a chair.

He didn’t come empty-handed to visit the set; he had prepared afternoon tea for the actors and staff.

After the tea arrived, Xiao Man started distributing it to everyone.

Suddenly, someone sat in the empty seat next to him. Yu Yan subconsciously moved a little to the side.

“Thank you, Young Master Yu, for the milk tea.”

The person speaking was Wen Xia, the second female lead of Immortal Journey.

“No need to thank me,” Yu Yan smiled politely.

“I didn’t expect Young Master Yu to lower himself and become He Zhiyu’s manager,” Wen Xia sighed.

“Just call me by my name. It’s just my job, it’s not much different from acting,” Yu Yan paused for a moment. “That hat looks good. What’s the pattern on it?”

Wen Xia took off her knitted hat and handed it to him. “This is a Q-version illustration that one of my fans commissioned. The pattern in the top right corner is of a sunset, made with non-woven fabric.”

“It’s quite nice.”

Yu Yan studied it carefully before returning the hat.

“It’s the thought that counts from the fans. Looking good is secondary,” Wen Xia smiled. “I heard you only have three artists at Xinghai. Do you have any more capacity?”

Yu Yan understood, she wanted to switch jobs.

“I’m sorry, I don’t have any plans to do so for now.”

Wen Xia had good resources and was well-regarded in the industry, but Yu Yan felt he wasn’t capable of managing such an artist yet.

A trace of disappointment flashed in Wen Xia’s eyes. “Alright, if you change your mind in the future, please consider me. I’m easy to work with and my business skills are good.”

“I will.” Yu Yan gestured with the base of his milk tea cup.

After a few casual chats, Wen Xia left, seeming not to be too eager about signing with Xinghai. Regardless, it was a confirmation of his abilities.

Feeling idle, Yu Yan turned to open Shen Yuming’s WeChat.

【Yu Yan: Brother Chen, someone just tried to chat me up.】

Shen Yuming was probably busy with a meeting and didn’t reply.

Yu Yan wasn’t bothered. He put away his phone and turned to watch He Zhiyu filming.

He didn’t receive any messages from Shen Yuming the entire afternoon, which made Yu Yan unreasonably anxious. He sent a few random messages, but still didn’t get a reply.

Recently, he occasionally sent Shen Yuming random messages, and Shen Yuming usually responded, though not consistently. Sometimes it was an hour later, sometimes five or six hours later, but he always replied before 9 PM. This was the first time he had not replied for such a long period.

At 11 PM, Yu Yan finally couldn’t hold back and called Shen Yuming.

The default ringtone echoed through the empty bedroom until it automatically hung up after fifty seconds.

Shen Yuming didn’t answer his call?

Yu Yan immediately sat up straight, redialed, and again it hung up after fifty seconds.

Could he still be in a meeting at this time?

Even if he was in a meeting, could he not spare a minute to reply?

Yu Yan was restless, unsure of what he was anxious about.

He tossed his phone on the bed and aimlessly walked around the room. He then went downstairs for a bottle of soda, returned, and sat cross-legged on the couch, knitting a scarf.

Although the heart stitch was more troublesome than the plain stitch, he got faster once he got the hang of it, and had already knit most of the scarf in just a few days.

But today, for some reason, the needles didn’t cooperate in his hands, and he made several mistakes in a row.

Feeling frustrated, Yu Yan tossed the scarf aside, turned, and flopped onto the bed, dialing Shen Yuming again.

After about ten seconds, the call was suddenly answered.

Time seemed to freeze, and no one spoke. Only the sound of wind was heard on the other end.

After a long pause, Shen Yuming broke the silence first.

“Yu Yan?”

Yu Yan snapped out of it. “It’s me.”

“Why are you calling suddenly?”

“You didn’t reply to my messages.”

Yu Yan lay on the bed, half his face pressed into the soft duvet, his voice muffled, almost sounding a little aggrieved.

After his words, there was no response from the other side, and even the wind noise had stopped.

Just as he was about to check if the call had been disconnected, a soft laugh came from the receiver.

“What are you laughing at?” Yu Yan immediately sat up, raising his voice.

“Yu Yan, it’s only 8 AM here,” Shen Yuming’s voice carried a slight smile.

He forgot about the time difference!

Yu Yan cleared his throat. “So… are you about to work? I’ve been a bit unaccustomed to you not being in the office these days.”

“You’ve been to the office?” Shen Yuming didn’t believe it.

“Just once,” Yu Yan didn’t care. “I went to visit He Zhiyu’s set today, and someone tried to chat me up.”

“Chat you up?” Shen Yuming’s tone lifted slightly.

Yu Yan covered the microphone and yawned lightly. “Yeah, He Zhiyu was showing off his newly learned ‘square step,’ still daydreaming about winning the Best Actor award.”

“Who tried to chat you up?” Shen Yuming pressed.

Yu Yan lay back on the bed. “A female actress from their crew. She probably wants to switch jobs and asked if I was still taking on newcomers.”

“Did you agree?”

“No, I wish I could, but I don’t have the resources,” Yu Yan sighed.

Shen Yuming chuckled. “You seem a bit regretful?”

“Not at all, but she’s pretty and has a bright future,” Yu Yan responded casually.

The scarf had fallen to the ground when he flopped from the sofa to the bed. He picked it up, dusted off the nonexistent dirt, neatly folded it, and put it in a bag.

He decided to continue knitting tomorrow at work for better efficiency.

Feeling sleepy, Yu Yan was about to hang up when Shen Yuming’s voice came through again.

“I’ll be back the day after tomorrow.”

“The day after tomorrow?” Yu Yan instantly became alert. “Weren’t you supposed to stay for half a month? It hasn’t even been a week yet. Aren’t you going to spend your mom’s birthday with her?”

Shen Yuming calmly responded, “They’re going on a family trip.”

Family.

That didn’t include Shen Yuming.

Even though Shen Yuming’s mother didn’t remember his birthday, he had still prepared a gift she liked and flew over for several hours to spend it with her, but the family was going on a trip.

Without him.

Yu Yan’s throat tightened, his heart heavy.

“My parents went abroad for a few days for a two-person world trip, and my brother and Xie Jie are going on their honeymoon in a few months. I also want to go on a trip, but I have no one to go with. How about we go together?” Yu Yan tried to keep his tone light.

Shen Yuming chuckled lightly. “Alright.”

A few soft knocks came from the other side of the line.

“Are you going to work now?”

“Mm, go to bed early,” Shen Yuming didn’t deny it.

Yu Yan yawned. “Goodnight, Brother Chen.”

“Goodnight.”

Fatigue hit him like a wave, and Yu Yan fell into a deep sleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

On the other side of the Pacific, Shen Yuming wasn’t as at ease.

When Zhao Chi entered, he had a small bottle of medicine in hand. “This is the sleeping pill the doctor prescribed. It’s quite strong, and the doctor suggests taking one.”

“Alright.” Shen Yuming responded, pouring out only one pill.

It was rare for him to follow the doctor’s advice, and Zhao Chi looked at him for a moment, saying nothing and waiting to take the bottle away later.

Whether it was psychological or not, after taking the pill, Shen Yuming felt sleepy.

“Change my return flight to tomorrow.”

The collaboration only had the final touches left. If not for wanting to spend time with Zhang Shujun on her birthday, he wouldn’t have stayed so long.

But he only found out last night that her family was going skiing in Switzerland.