After Meng Shuangling finished his meal, took a shower, and napped for a while, he woke up, checked the time, and estimated that Lu Yin Zhen should have finished reading the documents, so he went to the study to find him.

Being close in age to Lu Yin Zhen, Meng Shuangling had been sent over to Meng’s house to keep him company since childhood because Lu Yin Zhen had always been in poor health, and his peers didn’t really play with him. Meng Shuangling’s parents, feeling sorry for Lu Yin Zhen, often sent Meng Shuangling to stay with him. As a result, Meng’s house had a room dedicated to him, and he occasionally stayed over, with all the necessities like clothing and toiletries prepared for him.

Lu Yin Zhen had finished reading the documents, and the ones he had processed neatly lay on his right side. The topmost file had a faint crease in the corner of its inner page, indicating Lu Yin Zhen’s hesitation on a particular project, which carried a significant risk, akin to a death sentence. Meng Shuangling’s gaze fell on a plate of lotus seeds with only a few remaining. He reached out to grab some but was hit on the hand by a file.

“You’re so stingy,” Meng Shuangling caught the file and placed it on top of a stack of documents. “I’m your older brother, after all!”

“I’m your boss,” Lu Yin Zhen capped his pen and took a sip of tea.

Meng Shuangling chuckled, looking at him amusedly. “Is it necessary? It’s just your little boyfriend peeling them for you. You can’t possibly eat more. Are you planning to preserve the leftovers as a specimen?”

Lu Yin Zhen replied nonchalantly, “It’s not impossible.”

Meng Shuangling shook his head with a look of regret, as if witnessing a tyrant who would eventually ruin his kingdom, saying, “Indulging in pleasures clouds the mind.”

Lu Yin Zhen’s tone remained indifferent. “Emotionally reasonable, unavoidable.”

Meng Shuangling looked at him steadily, toning down the jest and sighing lightly, “It seems you really like him.”

It was a casual remark, and Meng Shuangling had no intention of delving deeper into the topic of Song Mianfeng. After all, his cousin had always been opinionated, and although his sexual orientation seemed unconventional, as Lu Yin Zhen’s family, they naturally accepted it as long as Lu Yin Zhen was happy.

Having finished his reflections, Meng Shuangling got down to business. “The resort project at Bishui Bay has been signed. The Chu family raised the price too high for the land in the east of the city. Big Brother said we should wait and see if we can find a sucker. Then our investment would be optimal. The project proposals I showed you are all decent, with moderate risks and average profits. It’s up to Big Brother to decide which ones to go for.”

Lu Yin Zhen nodded. “Okay. Let Big Brother choose on his own.”

Meng Shuangling placed the different project proposals back into separate file bags, glanced at the time in the lower right corner of his computer screen, and said, “I’m heading back to the company.”

It was already past five o’clock, and the office hours ended at six. Taking the documents back now, he could leave work with his older brother and sister-in-law and have dinner at their place.

“Shall I have the driver take you?” Lu Yin Zhen asked.

Meng Shuangling agreed. Although he felt sober, he had indeed consumed a fair amount of alcohol that day, and he was not about to risk driving under the influence. Before leaving, Meng Shuangling took a disposable cup with him and reminded Lu Yin Zhen with some concern, “Take good care of yourself. I’ll come to see you in a few days.”

…

Time flew by, and it was already the 7th.

Fu Qingshan was scheduled to record a program called “Poetry, Songs, and Essays,” a program focused on poetry and literature, starting from two o’clock in the afternoon for four hours. However, live recordings often faced unpredictable factors, so Fu Qingshan couldn’t predict when the program would end. He instructed Song Mianfeng to wait for him at the radio station building in City B and call his assistant upon arrival.

Song Mianfeng had informed Lu Yin Zhen the day before about Fu Qingshan’s trip to City B for the recording. At four o’clock, he changed into fresh clothes and left the house. Before leaving, he specifically went to the study to inform Lu Yin Zhen and said he was going out.

Lu Yin Zhen was checking stock market trends and looked a bit tired, so he leaned back in his chair to rest. He opened his eyes only upon hearing the sound and wore a somewhat weary expression between his brows. “Hmm, come back soon.”

He then asked, “Are you sure you don’t want the driver to take you?”

Song Mianfeng shook the car key in his hand. “I’ll drive myself. I have navigation.”

Lu Yin Zhen didn’t say much more, just reminded him, “Be careful while driving.”

“Okay, I’m leaving.” Song Mianfeng glanced at the computer screen, couldn’t help but furrow his brows slightly, “Rest if you’re tired.”

“Go ahead.” Lu Yin Zhen reiterated, “Come back soon.”

The car key was given to him by Lu Yin Zhen the previous night. Song Mianfeng went to the garage, took the car, set up the navigation, started the engine, and slowly drove out of the Chongjin Manor.

He left early to go get a haircut, as he still hadn’t dared to challenge a buzz cut. Instead, he went to a barber shop and had his hair trimmed shorter.

Upon arriving at the radio station building, finding a parking spot, and parking the car, it was already past six-thirty. Song Mianfeng called Fu Qingshan’s assistant, Yu Xiaoxi. As soon as he asked, “Is your boss done with the variety show?” he heard chaotic noise from the other end of the phone, sounding like many people talking at once. Yu Xiaoxi called out, “Boss,” and said, “It’s Song ge calling.” The voice coming through the phone was somewhat distorted and unclear.

Then, Fu Qingshan took the phone. “We’re done recording. Just finished. I’m coming out of the recording studio now. Where are you?”

“I’m in the underground parking lot,” Song Mianfeng answered. “So, should I not come up, and you’ll come down directly?”

“Sure, I’ll go back to the dressing room and remove my makeup. Wait for me for a few minutes.”

Song Mianfeng idly opened Weibo.

He followed quite a few entertainment bloggers on his alternate account, and the first thing he saw was a picture of Fu Qingshan at the airport. Many fans in the comments were saying things like “Our Brother Qing finally opened for business!”, “Brother worked hard!”, “Just landed in the morning and recording a show in the afternoon, heart aches for Brother!”, “I’m dead, I can love Brother’s resting image with his assistant for ten thousand years!” “I declare myself Brother’s manager for today”…

Reading the comments, Song Mianfeng couldn’t help but feel indifferent and cynical. Fu Qingshan never seemed to tire; after finishing “Phoenix Flying,” he claimed to be studying acting to improve himself, but in reality, he had been resting at home for nearly two months. He even had the time to go on arranged dates his family set up. Where was the exhaustion?

Thinking about all the overtime and sleepless nights he endured to free up his schedule, Song Mianfeng felt a mix of disdain and envy towards Fu Qingshan’s behavior of resting for two months with just a single excuse of studying acting.

Entertainment bloggers diligently reported daily, and as Song Mianfeng continued scrolling, he saw a picture of Zhou Yang at the airport. CP fans were able to extract sugar from yesterday’s airport picture and today’s, with comments like “Our beloved couple is finally together again!”, “So sweet seeing them together” “I’m dying, the picture of them resting together could make me love for ten thousand years!”…

Song Mianfeng scrolled through the comments, feeling both admiration and envy. It seemed like Zhou Yang had received another good opportunity after wrapping up “The Phoenix Flying.” He had been invited to participate in “Poetry, Songs, and Essays,” probably to promote the drama. So, it wasn’t surprising that he was here. However, encountering an ex-boyfriend was always awkward. If he had known Zhou Yang was also here, he would have come tomorrow to meet Fu Qingshan, rather than endure the stifling heat of the underground parking lot and the awkwardness of meeting Zhou Yang.

With these thoughts, Song Mianfeng’s patience dwindled by another notch. 

A “ding” sounded from the nearby elevator, and the doors opened, revealing a slightly chubby middle-aged man stepping out, followed by someone with a slender figure. Despite Song Mianfeng quickly averting his gaze after catching a glimpse of the made-up face, Zhou Yang still noticed him.

Song Mianfeng’s face always stood out, regardless of the time or place.

Moreover, in the vast parking lot, a living person was always more noticeable than a bunch of cars.

Fortunately, neither of them showed any intention of greeting each other, so the situation wasn’t particularly awkward. However, the encounter with Zhou Yang in the stifling heat of the underground parking lot left Song Mianfeng feeling somewhat irritated.

Glancing at the time, he sent a WeChat message to Fu Qingshan: “Friend, nineteen minutes have passed.”

[Fu Qingshan: Just a minute.]