Yu Wenning never knew that the day Lian Qing saved him, there was a car accident.

At that time, he had completely lost consciousness before being taken to the hospital by Lian Qing. When he woke up, it was already the third day, and his trusted subordinate had successfully found him.

However, the situation on his side was complicated at that time. He sensed that everyone on his father’s side, who posed a great threat to him, was itching to make a move. They didn’t stop at one attempt and immediately followed up with a second action.

He wanted to find Lian Qing, but he didn’t dare to do so openly for fear of attracting his father’s attention and putting Lian Qing in danger. He could only ask someone to secretly search for him. However, he had very few people he could trust at that time, and since Lian Qing didn’t leave any information behind, the people he sent to search were not wholeheartedly dedicated, resulting in no progress. By the time he finally had the opportunity to allocate resources and arrange a thorough search, all traces of Lian Qing had disappeared.

The only relevant information he could find was a silhouette captured by the hospital surveillance cameras. The angle and Lian Qing’s hurried movements made it impossible to capture his face on the footage.

With no success in finding him, let alone knowing about Lian Qing’s car accident.

He clenched his fist, unconsciously digging his nails into his flesh.

Whom should he blame? His insane father? The driver who hit him?

No, the person he should blame the most might be himself.

If only he had tried harder to find people to search for Lian Qing, if only he had invested more time and effort to locate him. Then at least Lian Qing wouldn’t have had to give up on his studies due to various reasons. He could have provided Lian Qing with the best doctors and treatments, allowed him to repeat a year in the best school, and given him the opportunity to attend the university he desired…

He gritted his teeth, consumed by remorse that wrapped around him like a spider’s thread, suffocating him. He almost self-inflictively held his breath until something crossed his mind, and he suddenly felt that something was off.

From his memory, he seemed to have sent someone to investigate at the school. He remembered that Lian Qing looked like a student, and in his soliloquies, he had mentioned his future plans for university.

Although there were no photos or names, he had asked someone to retrieve the files of the students from two nearby high schools, including the graduating class, and personally gone through them one by one, not missing a single one. However, he didn’t come across a half-body photo of Lian Qing.

It was precisely because of this that he had to give up the search later on.

Now, thinking about it, everything seems unusual. It’s impossible for a student to have all their information destroyed right after graduating. Unless someone deliberately sabotaged it.

But who would do such a thing?

Yu Wenning’s mind raced. If it was someone from his father’s side, they shouldn’t know that Lian Qing was the one who saved him. And even if they did, it’s unlikely they would go to the extent of destroying Lian Qing’s school records.

What if someone had targeted Lian Qing from the beginning?

Following this line of thought, Lian Qing’s car accident was definitely not an accident, and the destruction of his school records was probably just a subsequent move. But why would someone do this? It couldn’t be solely to completely block Lian Qing’s path to university, right?

Yu Wenning furrowed his brow. The only possibilities he could think of were two. One was that Cai Jingfeng’s parents or relatives, upon discovering his sexual orientation and his affection for Lian Qing before the college entrance exam, bribed a teacher at the school to do such a thing.

Such a scenario wasn’t entirely implausible, especially in many small schools where cases of identity substitution had occurred before. Moreover, Cai Jingfeng seemed to come from a well-off family that could afford to carry out such actions. However, with Cai Jingfeng’s personality, it shouldn’t have been easy for others to discover his secret. Besides, not everyone is as crazy as people on his father’s side who would joke about taking lives.

The second possibility was related to Lian Qing’s background.

Yu Wenning inexplicably remembered Miss Zhao, who bore some resemblance to Lian Qing. He silently made a note to urge his subordinates to speed up their investigation.

At the dinner table, everyone was engaged in a conversation, now discussing celebrity relationships.

Fu Miao sighed, “The entertainment industry was better in the past. We actors and singers didn’t face so much scrutiny when it came to dating or getting married. But now, celebrities can’t even date, especially idols. As soon as they reveal their relationship, it leads to countless negative consequences.”

Shaman also sighed, “Female stars have it a bit easier, but the young male celebrities are quite tragic. Take our studio’s Xiao Zhu, for example. When he announced his relationship, many fans unfollowed him. Some even went as far as to harass Xiao Zhu and his girlfriend, which has left him somewhat depressed.”

Fu Miao nodded and glanced at Zhao Chengyi, then at Lian Qing. She smiled and said, “You two from the studio should be fine. You’re so adorable; you shouldn’t have as many fangirls, right?”

Shaman’s mouth twitched. Yeah, right. Zhao Chengyi was one thing, but it seemed like he and Meng Meng had some interest in each other. The chances of this talented and handsome couple being obstructed by fans were not that high.

However, in Lian Qing’s case, no matter what kind of fans they were, if they found out that Lian Qing’s partner was a man, they would go crazy!

Zhao Chengyi shook his head, “I actually have quite a lot of fangirls. After all, my charm is irresistible.”

“Oh, please, you’re just a clown. They all see you as an amusing monkey,” Shaman teased. Before Lian Qing appeared, not to mention fans, even their studio members treated Zhao Chengyi like an entertaining monkey.

Zhao Chengyi rolled his eyes, “So I’m seen as a monkey. What about Lian Qing? Fifty percent of his fans are devoted moms, and twenty percent are older sister fans.”

He usually likes to go online when he has nothing else to do, and Lian Qing is one of the people he pays special attention to. So naturally, he knows roughly how Lian Qing’s fans are distributed.

Even when he opens Lian Qing’s Weibo, fan groups, and comments, it’s filled with “Ah ah ah, Little Monk’s mom/sister loves you” or “Please share a selfie/send some sugar.” There are hardly any comments like “Little Monk, I want to have your baby monkey” or “So handsome, my legs are weak,” which are typical girlfriend fan comments.

Bu Youmeng curiously asked, “So the remaining thirty percent are girlfriend fans?”

Lian Qing answered, “No, the remaining thirty percent are ship fans. They ship me with Yu Wenning. Half of them ship ‘Qingning,’ and the other half ship ‘Wenqing.'”

“That’s impressive. Before, you didn’t know anything about these things, but now you understand everything. Little Monk, it seems like you’ve grown up!” Bu Youmeng chuckled. Looking back, Lian Qing realized he had indeed made quite a few jokes when he first entered the industry.

He turned to the camera and said seriously, “If you’re watching this segment, my ship fans, listen up. It’s okay to ship us, but I’m the top, really! Don’t pick the wrong side, stand with ‘Qingning.'”

Others burst into laughter.

Almost everyone laughed except for Cai Jingfeng, who was dead inside, and the clueless Little Monk.

Among the staff, Yu Wenning, who had temporarily set aside his distractions, stared at Lian Qing intently, his eyes filled with unbreakable tenderness and a touch of helplessness. Alright, let him enjoy this small advantage for now. Once he recovers from his injuries, Yu Wenning will teach him to face reality.

Sister Sha laughed her signature “hehehe” and managed to say, “Oh my, this is definitely the best joke I’ve heard this year… hehehe…”

Fu Miao thought it was a joke and intentionally scrutinized Lian Qing before saying, “Little Monk, is this an official declaration? Are you afraid of losing fans?”

Lian Qing nodded, “I’m quite afraid. If no fans like me, then I can only move behind the scenes and become a staff member. I’ve been enjoying acting recently, and I’m a bit reluctant to give it up like this.”

His heartfelt words caused everyone to fall silent.

“Why did it suddenly hit home…” Zhao Chengyi sighed, trying to lighten the mood. He said, “Little Monk, you say you’re the top, but do you have any evidence?”

Lian Qing confidently replied, “I have good physical strength.”

Zhao Chengyi didn’t back down, “But you’re not taller than Mr. Yu!”

“But I’m younger than him,” Lian Qing argued.

“But you’re not as muscular as him,” Zhao Chengyi insisted. As someone who had also been fantasized about by fans, why should he be automatically classified as the bottom? He wouldn’t let Lian Qing win!

“He’s artificially muscular, and I’m naturally fit.” Lian Qing patted his own stomach. “I’m a man with six-pack abs!”

Watching from the sidelines, Yu Wenning wanted to tell his Little Monk that he also had six-pack abs now. As for physical strength, he believed that one day, Lian Qing would realize that he’s just as capable as him. 

Zhao Chengyi asked, “Does Mr. Yu have abs? I think he probably does.”

Lian Qing thought back carefully and shook his head, “I haven’t seen his stomach, so I don’t know if he has them or not.”

….

No one knew that this seemingly playful conversation of theirs would later be used as a highlight by the production team and cause quite a discussion.

Of course, they also didn’t know that it was precisely this conversation that laid a solid foundation for Lian Qing’s future coming out, making him even more popular instead of facing backlash.

In the evening, except for Lian Qing, Xiaoxiao, and the staff, everyone was completely drunk and was sent back to their rooms by the staff. As for the daily live broadcast, it had to be canceled today due to everyone’s poor condition.

After coaxing the little guy to sleep, Lian Qing quietly put on a large coat and went to the small balcony.

Outside, Yu Wenning was sitting on the familiar flower bed.

Lian Qing waved at him, and soon Yu Wenning slowly walked into the villa. Lian Qing hurriedly opened the door, and in no time, his older brother appeared at the door.

Lian Qing couldn’t help but smile brightly and carefully led him to the small balcony, sitting him down on a chair. Then he semi-closed the balcony glass door and muttered softly, “Why does it feel more and more like sneaking around…”

Yu Wenning: “…” He was at a loss for words.

After sitting down next to him, Lian Qing reached into his coat pocket and took out a bar of chocolate.

“Hehehe… Xiao San’er fell asleep, let’s split it, Big Brother.” While speaking, Lian Qing had already swiftly torn open the packaging.

“Why is it melting…” Lian Qing frowned and held the sticky chocolate, unsure how to handle it.

Yu Wenning touched his hair and said, “Maybe it’s been too close to your body, and the temperature got a bit high, so it melted. Don’t split it, just eat it yourself. I’m not a big fan of snacks.”

“Alright.” Lian Qing knew he was telling the truth, so he didn’t insist and took a bite of the whole bar of chocolate, happily squinting his eyes.

He found a moment to vaguely say, “Take off your mask here, there’s no one else around.”

Yu Wenning shook his head. “I’m afraid of being secretly photographed. It wouldn’t be good for you.”

Just as the words fell, the two heard a worried and resentful voice, “Shixiong, you’re secretly eating…!”

Little Monk Lian stood inside the glass door, barefoot with a small bald head peeking out. He first looked at the chocolate in his Shixiong’s hand and couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.

Then he looked at Yu Wenning, who was wearing a hat, mask, and a large coat. The little guy became even more resentful, “Is this uncle a homewrecker?”

Although Little Monk didn’t understand what a homewrecker was, when his Shixiong went to film, he would sometimes watch TV dramas with Chen Qi gege. For men who didn’t sleep at night and sneaked into other people’s rooms, Chen Qi gege said they were homewreckers.

He didn’t recognize the person in front of him, so it was right to call him a homewrecker.

His Shixiong actually preferred to share food with a homewrecker rather than giving it to him. How outrageous!

The little guy was so aggrieved that his voice carried a hint of crying, “Shixiong, I’m going to tell Shifu and Yu gege that you’re sharing food with a homewrecker and not giving it to me!”

Lian Qing: “…………” Who taught his Shidi all these nonsense?!!!

Yu Wenning: “…………” So, did he accidentally put a green hat on himself?