“Just clicked on it randomly and watched,” Fu Wenshan answered somewhat stiffly.

Xie Wanxing didn’t pay much attention. He just asked casually.

It had been a long time since he watched the works he filmed during his debut. After all, his acting skills at the time were quite raw, and he knew the plot inside out, so there was nothing surprising about it. Instead, memories from filming were a bit more interesting.

“When I filmed this, it was actually winter, freezing cold, but I had to wear short sleeves pretending it was summer,” Xie Wanxing said as he watched. “There’s a scene where the female lead falls into the water, and both the male lead and I jump in to save her. But that scene failed three times, and the next day, all three of us ended up in the hospital getting IV drips.”

At that time, all three of them were newbies, regardless of their family backgrounds; they were quite professional in terms of acting. They had to recite lines to each other while hanging IVs in the hospital.

Their manager quickly recorded the scene and posted it online, creating some buzz about their professionalism.

Some netizens said it was a stunt, while others praised their dedication. But according to Xie Wanxing’s own evaluation, it was just basic professionalism for actors.

He thought about it and couldn’t help but smile. Upon closer examination, it was only something that happened three years ago, but it felt like it had been a long time.

“What were you doing that year?” Xie Wanxing casually asked Fu Wenshan. “Studying abroad?”

He remembered that Fu Wenshan hadn’t debuted at that time.

Fu Wenshan shook his head. “No. I was a trainee at Huayin.”

This was the first time Xie Wanxing had heard about this. He was puzzled. “Weren’t you supposed to debut at Canyu? How come you were a trainee at Huayin?”

Fu Wenshan scratched his face and answered honestly, “At that time, I had just returned to the country, but my family didn’t agree with me entering the entertainment industry. So I had a falling out with my family, signed with a company as a trainee, and even had my card frozen. I was left with only a few sets of clothes. Fortunately, the company arranged a dormitory for me; otherwise, I would have been sleeping on the streets.”

He was as poor as could be.

Xie Wanxing became interested. He stopped watching TV and sat up straight, eagerly looking at Fu Wenshan. “I thought your family indulged you quite a bit; otherwise, they wouldn’t have agreed to let you sing. What happened later? Did they agree?”

“We had a falling out for a year before they later agreed. All my cooking and cleaning skills were honed during that time. Cooking was just a hobby when I was studying abroad, but it became a real skill when I lived alone. Fu Wenshan reminisced and smiled a little. “At that time, four guys lived in one apartment. I had never lived with anyone before in my life, and I got into two fights in one month. I almost got a warning from the agency. But it got better later on.”

“Did any of your roommates debut as well?” Xie Wanxing asked again, feeling very dissatisfied with Fu Wenshan’s inability to get to the point. He lightly bumped Fu Wenshan and said, “You still haven’t said why you changed companies.”

At this point, the smile on Fu Wenshan’s face faded slightly.

He casually brushed it off, “One of my roommates debuted, the other two left the entertainment industry later and we lost contact. I didn’t want to stay at Huayin for some reasons, and my relationship with my family had improved, so I paid the breach of contract fee and signed with Canyu.”

Xie Wanxing was truly disappointed with Fu Wenshan’s storytelling ability.

A decent rags-to-riches script, but he managed to tell it so flatly and uneventfully.

He pouted, crawled back into bed, stopped watching the video, and turned his back to Fu Wenshan, scrolling through his phone, preparing to sleep.

But after a while, Fu Wenshan also leaned over, didn’t say anything, just put his arm around Xie Wanxing’s waist.

Xie Wanxing’s fingers, swiping his phone, slowed down involuntarily.

Fu Wenshan’s warm breath sprayed on the back of his neck, tickling and teasing.

But in the end, they didn’t do anything, just held each other and slept through the night. Before falling asleep, outside the window, the rain was still falling gently, tapping softly on the banana trees and windows in the courtyard, with a touch of indescribable tenderness.

The next day, the rain outside hadn’t stopped, and Fu Wenshan happened to have no work, so he stayed at Xie Wanxing’s house.

Xie Wanxing sat on the floor memorizing the script, while Fu Wenshan wrote lyrics next to him. They were each busy with their own things, yet there was a quiet and harmonious atmosphere.

In the evening, Fu Wenshan actually made homemade milk tea. Xie Wanxing only tried it out of curiosity, but was instantly amazed by the taste.

“Damn, what are you doing being a singer? You could probably make more money opening a milk tea shop,” Xie Wanxing couldn’t help but take another sip. This milk tea even had a layer of caramel, obviously high in calories. He drank it with a lot of pain, “I’m about to start filming, if I gain weight, the director will definitely scold me.”

But as he spoke, he glanced at the pot, “What delicious thing are you making?”

Fu Wenshan was making black pepper steak, which was already ready to be served. He placed the steak on a plate and handed it to Xie Wanxing, “Dig in, there’s dessert in the oven, you can have it after dinner.”

Xie Wanxing held the plate of tempting steak, feeling particularly helpless.

Before Fu Wenshan came, his fridge was only filled with various vegetables, fruits, and milk.

But ever since Fu Wenshan arrived, the fridge was always full whenever he opened it. Xie Wanxing deeply suspected that his perfect figure maintained throughout his career would be ruined by Fu Wenshan.

But after cutting a piece of steak and putting it into his mouth, he felt that life was still worth living, so he ate first.

He guiltily finished a whole steak and used all his willpower to refuse dessert after dinner.

After dinner, he prepared to turn over a new leaf and be a dedicated actor. He practiced a few more scenes holding the script.

Fu Wenshan even volunteered to accompany him for a rehearsal of a scene, playing the role of the emperor who liked to lift his chin, which made Xie Wanxing suspect that this guy was doing it on purpose.

At first, Xie Wanxing thought that Fu Wenshan’s rehearsal with him was just for fun, but after two rehearsals, he was surprised to find out that Fu Wenshan’s acting skills were actually not bad.

Although it couldn’t be compared to those with professional training, passing the grade was not a problem.

“When I was a trainee, the company made us take acting classes for a long time,” Fu Wenshan explained without looking up, “Later, because my acting skills were okay, I almost couldn’t debut as a singer. That’s also one of the reasons I terminated the contract. I don’t like acting anyway.”

Xie Wanxing rolled his eyes after hearing this. This remark would probably make a bunch of clueless actors furious.

Heavens gave you food to eat, but instead of eating it, you kick it aside disdainfully.

Fu Wenshan glanced at the script again, pondered the emotions, and when he looked up again, his eyes were indeed cold and suspicious.

He held Xie Wanxing’s chin with one hand, and his thumb lightly stroked his soft lips. Fu Wenshan stared at him, as if he was appraising and scrutinizing him.

Xie Wanxing’s breath faltered for a moment.

“Like a sharp knife, I reuse you because you’re sharp, drawing blood as soon as it’s unsheathed,” Fu Wenshan leaned in slightly, though he raised the corners of his mouth, there was no hint of amusement in his eyes, “But a knife, if it develops feelings, will become dull, rusty, and eventually discarded.”

Xie Wanxing pursed his lips, letting his heart sink into the play, turning into the unwilling emissary leading in the ancient court.

There was not much expression on his face, neither fear nor hurried sincerity towards the emperor.

He was like stagnant water, regardless of how turbulent the undercurrents were, the surface remained as calm as deadwood.

His eyelashes flickered, first calmly meeting the emperor’s gaze for a moment before resigning himself, as if accepting fate, he lowered his eyes and spoke with a hint of despair, “I… will remember this deeply in my heart.”

There was clearly no expression on his face, almost to the point of indifference, but his eyes carried endless despair. Even the slightest flutter of his eyelashes felt like a blade piercing through one’s heart.

Fu Wenshan was almost softened by his gaze.

He thought, which emperor could withstand it? With such a soul-stirring emissary, just one glance from him could turn a wise ruler into a tyrant.

The scene ended here, the next scene would be in the imperial garden.

Xie Wanxing quickly snapped out of character after finishing the scene, picking up the script again, and rereading it several times, trying to delve into the emotions once more.

But Fu Wenshan’s hand didn’t move from Xie Wanxing’s chin.

He leaned in, pinching his chin, forcing him to lift his head. With a bit of forcefulness in his hand, his kiss fell delicately and tenderly.

Before Xie Wanxing could react, Fu Wenshan had already lifted him onto his lap, the script in his hand falling to the ground with a crisp sound.

While kissing Xie Wanxing, Fu Wenshan asked him, “Isn’t this emperor too dumb, encountering an emissary-in-chief like you, yet only assigning you to handle cases?”

Xie Wanxing was a bit out of breath from the kiss, and Fu Wenshan’s hands had already started to undress him.

He thought with a headache, should he stop this for a smooth departure tomorrow, or should he just go with it and worry later?

It was truly a dilemma of the century.

“If the emissary-in-chief shouldn’t handle cases, what else should he do?” Xie Wanxing asked hoarsely.

Fu Wenshan had already peeled off Xie Wanxing’s trousers and tossed them to the ground. He lifted Xie Wanxing’s legs and smiled at him. His eyes were bright, but his smile carried a hint of mischief, a kind of indescribable naughtiness that made one itch.

“Of course, he should warm the bed,” he said.

The warmth of the bed was something Xie Wanxing didn’t know about.

Anyway, the floor was warm, and he had warmed it himself.

When Xie Wanxing sat up from the floor, he found that the sky outside had turned from dusk to pitch black.

Ignoring the hickeys all over his body, he didn’t rush to the bathroom to shower. The first thing he did was point at Fu Wenshan’s nose and say, “Get out of my house, right now, immediately.”

Quite ruthless.

Feeling guilty, Fu Wenshan didn’t speak, and without resistance, he awkwardly rubbed his nose about to leave.

He was now awake and felt he had gone a bit too far. Xie Wanxing had just cried, and he hadn’t stopped.

Indeed, it was quite beastly.

Seeing him silent, Xie Wanxing sneered, stood up with a hand on his butt, and walked into the bathroom without looking back.

That night, Fu Wenshan was mercilessly kicked out of Xie Wanxing’s house, walking several dozen meters down the path back to his own home.

And the next morning, Xie Wanxing didn’t even say goodbye, he just dragged his suitcase and boarded the plane.

He sat on the plane, wearing a steam eye mask and closing his eyes to rest. After a night passed, his waist felt a bit sore, and he couldn’t find a comfortable position to lie in.

As he sighed, he felt like he was simply courting trouble. Other people’s casual partners just wanted money, but his demanded his life.

It’s hard to say who was worse off.