When it came to the recording of the show, Lin Can couldn’t help but start feeling anxious again.

Getting a spot on Qi Yuan’s program meant it would definitely be popular. Every word and action of his would be under the watchful eyes of hundreds of thousands of viewers. Even a casual gesture or a single word could potentially have a negative impact on Qi Yuan…

But in order to maintain his integrity and for the paycheck that could allow the Lin family to live comfortably, Lin Can felt he had to grit his teeth and give it a shot.

Speaking of the paycheck, Lin Can thought of the five hundred thousand in his bank account.

He stepped out of his room, and there was Qi Yuan sitting on the living room sofa, flipping through the script with a look of irritation. When he saw Lin Can come out, he frowned and asked what he was doing.

Lin Can said, “About that five hundred thousand…”

“What five hundred thousand?” Qi Yuan didn’t immediately catch on. It was only when he saw the phone Lin Can was holding that he realized Lin Can was talking about the small amount of money he had given him a few days ago.

“Just take it if it’s for you,” he waved his hand impatiently, too lazy to listen further. “Giving you five hundred thousand is as easy as giving your brother fifty bucks. No need to come bother me about it. Go, go, go, clean up your messy room.”

Wasn’t it just because he couldn’t sleep well at night? Did he really have to hold a grudge over that?

Lin Can squeezed his phone and went back to his room.

Although Qi Yuan said he could keep the five hundred thousand, Lin Can didn’t plan to spend it. He wanted to keep it around in case of emergencies. If Qi Yuan wanted it back, he could pull it out right away.

Lin Can thought he had everything arranged well, but under the dual pressure of recording the show and suddenly having a large sum of money, he still couldn’t sleep at night.

The next morning, he made breakfast for Qi Yuan while sporting a pair of dark circles under his eyes.

Qi Yuan had just finished exercising and came out of the bathroom after a shower, sipping coffee. When he saw Lin Can looking like he had been drained of all energy, he couldn’t help but chuckle.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t sleep well?”

Lin Can nodded slowly, as if he had been subtly prompted to yawn.

Qi Yuan looked pleased, “Still saying I’m the one who can’t sleep well? Clearly, you can’t live without me. So, what do you think? Want to move back in?”

Lin Can gave him a helpless glance. This guy had such a bad temper yesterday, even finishing dinner with a cold face, and now he was acting like nothing had happened?

Oh, not nothing; at least he still remembered to drag Lin Can back to his room.

“I was just thinking about things,” Lin Can said.

“What things? What to eat for lunch today?” Qi Yuan teased him.

“Not that,” Lin Can frowned, “About that five hundred thousand…”

“Is it really just about the five hundred thousand that you couldn’t sleep well all night?” Qi Yuan, who had never known what it was like to be short on money, expressed his skepticism. “You’re not thinking about your ex-husband but too scared to say it, are you?”

Lin Can fell silent, his movements of frying eggs suddenly becoming more vigorous.

Qi Yuan realized he might have spoken out of turn and cleared his throat, “Take the money if you want. If you think it’s too much, just consider it as me paying you half a year’s salary in one go.”

After he said that, the frown on Lin Can’s forehead finally showed signs of easing.

“Fine, let’s just say you hired a cleaner and a cook at a high salary.”

“High salary?” Qi Yuan laughed without mercy, “What kind of high salary is that? My family’s cook doesn’t charge as little as you do.”

“…” Lin Can didn’t want to talk anymore.

After being teased by Qi Yuan like this, the knot in Lin Can’s heart finally unraveled. But to match his salary, he made a few extra dishes for breakfast.

Qi Yuan, feeling a rare sense of burden, said, “You made so much, I can’t finish it all.”

Lin Can was taken aback, “But it’s not that much.”

“I’m a star; I have to maintain my figure,” Qi Yuan reminded him.

Lin Can, who just wanted to do his job as a cook and cleaner well, started to feel overwhelmed.

“What should I do then?” He thought for a moment, “Should I go share some with the security guards?”

Qi Yuan looked inexplicably displeased, “Why share it with them? So they can open the door for you faster next time?”

Only then did Lin Can realize Qi Yuan was still brooding over the time he had been stuck outside the community, and he couldn’t help but ask more.

“You didn’t let the security guard in, did you?”

Qi Yuan gritted his teeth, “I wanted to, but couldn’t find a reason.”

After all, it was their fault for not entering the identity information in advance; it was no wonder those security guards were confused.

“I shouldn’t have wandered around; let’s just forget it,” Lin Can said, then looked at the table full of breakfast and started to worry again, “So what should I do with all this? Should I keep it for lunch?”

If that got out, those security guards would think he was being mistreated.

Qi Yuan finished his last sip of coffee, “I’ll take it to the company and see who hasn’t eaten, and give it to them. Is that okay?”

Lin Can naturally nodded, “Then I’ll pack it up for you.”

Although Qi Yuan didn’t need to use the kitchen, it was fully equipped with all kinds of utensils, many of which Lin Can had never seen before, beautifully arranged in the cabinets and quite expensive.

Lin Can casually rummaged through and found several lunch boxes, all part of a set, engraved with a long string of English, probably the brand name he had never seen before.

While washing them, Qi Yuan walked in with his buzzing phone that wouldn’t stop vibrating.

“Answer it; it’s buzzing non-stop, it’s driving me crazy.” Qi Yuan felt his good mood in the morning was about to be ruined.

Seeing Lin Can’s hands were wet and inconvenient, he kindly helped press the answer button.

Song Xiao’s loud voice came through the phone the next second.

“Lin Can, do you want to die?! I’ve been calling you for so long and you didn’t answer!”

Lin Can dried his hands, took the phone from Qi Yuan, and looked up to find Qi Yuan frowning in displeasure.

He thought Qi Yuan was upset that he was still in contact with Ran Yang, so he hurriedly asked Song Xiao what was going on.

“What else could it be!” Song Xiao was furious, “I’m asking you, did you report me to Ran Yang?!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Can felt Qi Yuan’s sharp gaze on him, as if it were wrapped in knives, fierce and intimidating.

He quickly said, “I didn’t.”

“You didn’t?” Song Xiao clearly didn’t believe him, “Then why is Ran Yang so sure you were threatened?”

Lin Can had no idea why. Ever since Qi Yuan said he would arrange for them to meet, he hadn’t received a call from Ran Yang again.

Song Xiao didn’t want to hear his excuses. In his mind, if Lin Can said he had, it would be like seeing a ghost.

“I don’t care if you reported me or not; this is your fault, and you should explain!” he said fiercely.

Lin Can just said “oh” and didn’t argue back.

His honesty this time left Song Xiao a bit at a loss, as they had always been at odds in the past.

He suddenly remembered the rumors he had heard recently.

“By the way, I heard you’re being kept?”

Lin Can was taken aback; it was outrageous how some people had no sense of boundaries and could ask such things face to face.

Song Xiao asked again, “Who’s so tasteless that they have their eyes on you? Are they rich or not?”

He didn’t even wait for Lin Can to answer before throwing out a second question, showing just how low his opinion of Lin Can was.

Lin Can didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and could only say, “It’s okay, I guess.”

“You say it’s okay, so that definitely means they’re not rich.” Song Xiao, who prided himself on seeing through Lin Can’s vanity, let out a sigh of relief.

After a cold snort, he warned, “Since your sugar daddy isn’t rich, you better behave. If you dare to provoke Ran Yang again, I’ll deal with both you and your sugar daddy!”

After saying that, he hung up decisively.

Listening to the beeping sound on the phone, Lin Can gave Qi Yuan an awkward smile.

Qi Yuan’s expression remained calm, but his eyes told a different story.

“This is the first person who dares to threaten me.”

Not to mention his prominent family background, he was someone who had a say in everything outside. Even at home, he was like a little tyrant.

Who would dare to point a finger at him?

Lin Can hurriedly said, “Ignorance is no excuse; he didn’t know it was you on the other side.”

Why did he have to go against the male lead?

Qi Yuan’s lips curled into a mocking arc, and just as he was about to say something, he saw Lin Can casually put the phone down and turn back to continue packing the breakfast he was taking to the company to share with others.

“Aren’t you angry about being yelled at?” he asked.

Lin Can didn’t stop packing, “There’s nothing to be angry about; after all, what he said was true.”

And besides, it wasn’t him being scolded; it was the original owner.

Qi Yuan tilted his head, thinking this was quite interesting.

• Gong Yusheng walked into Qi Yuan’s office just in time to catch Qi Yuan lecturing Xie Jun.

“What’s going on?” He noticed Xie Jun was holding two lunch boxes and couldn’t help but be curious, “Didn’t Secretary Xie have time to eat breakfast?”

Xie Jun had a blank expression and didn’t want to talk.

But Qi Yuan was unusually enthusiastic, “You should take two as well.”

Gong Yusheng was puzzled and leaned over to take a look, “What is this?”

“Breakfast made by Lin Can.”

“…” Gong Yusheng was about to reach for it but pulled his hand back, his expression becoming as complicated as Xie Jun’s. “We’re already eating our sister-in-law’s heartfelt breakfast so soon?”

Mentioning “sister-in-law” made Qi Yuan’s expression twist for a moment. “What nonsense are you talking about? He made too much, so he asked me to bring it to the company to share.”

Gong Yusheng felt that it was better not to explain; the more he explained, the more ambiguous it became. “Are you the kind of person who does what others say? You’re in big trouble now.”

Qi Yuan grabbed a tissue box from the table and threw it at him. “Eat your food; you’re just as chatty as Xie Jun.”

Now Gong Yusheng understood why Xie Jun was being lectured.

He exchanged a glance with Xie Jun, and the two squatted by the floor-to-ceiling window, eating breakfast while watching the morning scenery of the city.

To be honest, Lin Can’s cooking was indeed quite good. It wasn’t as flashy as his family’s chef, but it was simply delicious, with a unique flavor that couldn’t be replicated by others.

After eating to their fill, Gong Yusheng wiped his mouth in satisfaction and said he wanted to eat Lin Can’s chicken soup dumplings next time.

“Really treating Lin Can as your own now? Stay away,” Qi Yuan said with a rather displeased tone.

Xie Jun, who didn’t want to get involved in gay matters, chose to go out and wash the lunch boxes, lightening the burden for the handsome guy at home.

“What do you want from me?” Qi Yuan asked, rubbing his stomach after overeating.

Gong Yusheng finally remembered the purpose of his early morning visit. “It’s about the show.”

Qi Yuan hummed, signaling him to continue.

“The ex-husband you mentioned, I invited him, and he agreed quite readily.”

Rather than saying he agreed readily, it was more like he was eager, as Ran Yang really needed another image to re-enter the public eye.

Their agent had been communicating with the director’s team long before everything happened.

Qi Yuan wasn’t surprised by this outcome. “And then?”

“You know that dating variety shows are all about couples, so for the ex-husband…” Gong Yusheng had already made up his mind but still wanted to ask Qi Yuan’s opinion. “I was thinking of inviting that young son from the Song family.”

“Song Xiao?”

“Yeah, didn’t they say he has a good relationship with that ex-husband?”

“Good relationship?” Thinking of the harsh threats from that morning, Qi Yuan’s smile turned colder. “What kind of relationship? In bed or out of bed?”

“Why can’t you get a clue in this area?” Seeing Qi Yuan’s reaction, Gong Yusheng hurriedly brought out the reasoning he had prepared.

“If Song Xiao and the ex-husband hit it off, then the ex-husband wouldn’t come to bother Lin Can anymore, right?”

“Not to mention, if you four go on the show together, Lin Can will definitely stop thinking about remarrying when he sees his ex-husband being all lovey-dovey with Song Xiao!”

“If he gives up, wouldn’t that be the perfect opportunity for you to swoop in?”

At first, Qi Yuan thought there was some merit to what he was saying, but as he listened further, he became displeased, rolling his eyes high.

“Am I that cheap? I’d have to swoop in on a scumbag?”

“…”

Good, very good.

Gong Yusheng thought.

The flag for chasing after his wife was set up just like that.