Chapter 33

When Zhou Buchu heard the word “money,” his face immediately turned stern, and he said, “Once the money is in my hands, why would I give it away?”

Ye Chen’s heart sank. “Won’t you return money that belongs to others?”

Zhou Buchu’s face turned pale, and he pressed his chest, sitting down abruptly on the ground, sweat dripping from his forehead.

“Uncle Zhou?” Ye Chen cautiously touched him. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I can’t… you have to let me catch my breath…” Zhou Buchu weakly shuffled backward, leaning against Ye Chen’s spiritual apple tree, his face pale as he reached down and traced two circles on the ground, feeling around for an apple that had fallen, picking it up and taking a bite. He breathed out like a thread of air, “I imagined giving you such a thick stack of money for nothing… damn, I’d give you such a thick stack of banknotes for nothing, and you wouldn’t even mention giving me back a courtyard…”

Nonsense! Ye Chen gritted his teeth. He thought about buying a courtyard with the money from one day of selling vegetables?!

“Then, can you keep the cash from selling the vegetables and transfer the money to my phone?” Ye Chen repeatedly jumped over Zhou Buchu’s bottom line. “Wouldn’t that be better?”

“Stop it!” Zhou Buchu suddenly covered his ears. “I’m imagining it again!”

Seeing Zhou Buchu’s extreme reaction, Ye Chen instantly dismissed the idea of asking him to help sell vegetables. If Zhou Buchu deducted the vegetable sales proceeds after selling them, Ye Chen wouldn’t be able to win a fight, wouldn’t be able to grab them back, and wouldn’t even have the face to report it to the police. He was afraid he would only be left with regret and remorse. Besides, Zhou Buchu helped with farming and digging tree pits every day, which was fair compensation for the vegetables Ye Chen gave him.

I’m not someone who takes advantage of others, Ye Chen thought.

With someone helping to take care of the vegetable plot, Ye Chen decisively expanded the planting scale. Over the past few days, he had been planting over twenty rows of vegetables early in the morning and late at night. He also replanted ten apple trees and pear trees. He wrote detailed instructions for the daily care of different crops on his memo pad and sent them to Zhou Buchu via WeChat, along with the work plan for the next day every night before going to bed.

The online shop he applied for with Xiao Gao’s ID had been successfully verified. Ye Chen originally wanted Zhou Buchu to help pick winter jasmine flowers so he could make winter jasmine flower pillows and hang them in the shop to sell. However, the five divine beast cubs volunteered to take on the task of picking flowers. Considering their short stature, this task would be easier for them than for adults, so Ye Chen let them do it. Currently, four of the babies picked flowers while one collected grass seeds, so that next time it snowed, Ye Chen could plant another batch of winter jasmine grass.

When Zhou Buchu set the terms for compensation, he didn’t see the chickens Ye Chen raised in the west wing. He only requested vegetables and fruits as compensation. Considering that the new batch of young hens was gradually maturing and starting to lay eggs, and the daily egg production was not small, Ye Chen voluntarily offered to send some spiritual chicken eggs to Yinglong every day to help him recover. Zhou Buchu gladly accepted. In the spirit of reciprocity in business, he voluntarily took on the occasional task of cooking for the six divine beast cubs in the courtyard—mainly when Ye Chen was busy with filming or when he couldn’t leave the presence of ordinary people.

…

There was only one week left until Ye Chen finished shooting his scenes. He was worried that he wouldn’t be able to eat food that suited his taste once he left the crew. So, he pickled a small jar of tender yellow cucumbers and a small jar of carrots and white radishes mixed together. The pickled vegetables were refreshing, crisp, and slightly sweet and sour. He would scoop out some diced vegetables from each jar every morning—green cucumbers, orange carrots, and white radishes. They were not only beautiful but also appetizing. He believed it wouldn’t be a problem to have Xiao He use these pickled vegetables to make a bowl of rice porridge for Shen Mofeng every morning.

After putting away the jars of pickled vegetables and wiping his hands with an apron, Ye Chen went to prepare for the end of shooting.

“Chen Chen… cough! Cough cough!” In the evening, as usual, Shen Mofeng came to bum a meal. As soon as he pushed open the door, he was hit by the pungent oil smoke and was forced to flee outside, leaning on his knees in the courtyard and coughing violently.

“Shen Ge!” Ye Chen poured the contents of the pot into a large bowl and hurriedly followed outside, pulling down his mask to reveal a face reddened by the stove’s fire, apologizing, “Are you okay? I was frying dried chili peppers and forgot to tell you in advance…”

“It’s okay,” Shen Mofeng straightened up, “there’s no need to tell me in advance… What’s wrong with your eyes?”

“They’re just stinging.” Ye Chen’s conjunctiva was sensitive, irritated by the chili peppers, making his eyes watery. He blinked hard and scooped up some clear well water from the jar, rinsing his eyes with his hands.

Shen Mofeng silently handed him a tissue.

Ye Chen wiped the water droplets off his face, his cheeks flushed, his eye sockets slightly red, with a hint of moisture gleaming in them. Shen Mofeng felt both sorry for Ye Chen’s pitiful appearance and couldn’t help but find it adorable.

Shen Mofeng collected himself and asked, “Why are you frying dried chili peppers?”

“I want to make a jar of sesame chili oil for you, the kind you can directly mix with noodles.” Ye Chen smiled self-consciously, looking up at him, “I’m afraid you won’t eat properly again once I leave.”

Shen Mofeng’s heart fluttered, and he reached out to take Ye Chen’s mask. “Give me the mask. I’ll fry it. My eyes aren’t affected by the spice.”

“Don’t!” Ye Chen exclaimed in horror, blurting out the truth, “It took so long to dry the chili peppers. If you fry them too long and they burn… um, I’m afraid you’ll inhale the smoke, and these past few days, they’ve finally dried properly.”

Shen Mofeng looked at him expressionlessly.

Ye Chen met his gaze with a sly look for a moment, realizing that his disdain for Shen Mofeng’s cooking skills had been revealed beyond repair. His ears flushed hot, so he decided to keep quiet. He raised his arms and gently pushed Shen Mofeng’s chest, urging him to step back. Shen Mofeng looked down at him, allowing himself to be pushed back step by step. The corners of his mouth, which had been straight a moment ago, curled up slightly.

As Shen Mofeng retreated to the entrance of the farmhouse, Ye Chen kindly reminded him, “Watch out for the doorstep.”

“…” Shen Mofeng was helpless, but he obediently stepped over the threshold.

“You go back and rest first. I’ll message you when the meal’s ready.” Ye Chen said as he closed the farmhouse door with a bang.

After a second of silence, the sound of the lock clicking came from behind the door.

Big Young Master Shen, who had been swept out the door, stared in disbelief for a moment before laughing disdainfully.

He, too, had been fooled by the little guy, feeling even the bowl of cold shoulder broth was brewed with rock sugar.

After seeing off Shen Mofeng, Ye Chen returned to the kitchen, poured the sautéed dried chili peppers into the food processor he borrowed from Xiao He, ground them into chili powder, and poured them into a large bowl. He then sprinkled a handful of crushed sesame seeds, which looked like broken jade, on top. After finishing these tasks, the cooking oil in the pot had boiled. Various spices danced and rolled in the oil. Ye Chen poured out the boiling oil, strained out the spices, let it cool slightly, then scooped up a ladleful and poured it into the bowl of chili powder and sesame seeds. With a crackling sound, the aggressive aroma of chili and sesame invaded the air, bursting through the bubbles on the surface of the hot oil.

With a large bowl of chili oil ready, Ye Chen simply cooked two bowls of noodles and called Shen Mofeng to eat. This was because he wanted to test the power of spiritual chili oil.

After the chili oil settled slightly, most of the chili powder accumulated at the bottom of the bowl, while large pieces of white sesame floated like snowflakes on the bright red oil surface, enticing. Scooping up a large spoonful and stirring it into the noodles, taking a bite while it’s hot, the fresh and spicy aroma of chili oil immediately whipped the taste buds fiercely. After swallowing, a thin layer of sweat broke out on the back, and a bowl of plain noodles became an extraordinary delicacy under the influence of spiritual chili oil. The two sat facing each other, only separated by a small low table, but neither of them cared to speak. During the meal, there was only the faint sound of Ye Chen breathing, feeling the pain from the spiciness, but wanting to eat more as it got hotter.

“Eating out sweat.” Shen Mofeng sighed lightly, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a tissue, smiling, “It’s good to eat something warm, or you’ll suffer during tonight’s night scenes.”

Ye Chen nodded in agreement. “Just thinking about it gives me chills…”

Later, they would have several scenes together, and tonight, with the temperature dropping and the wind blowing, it would be freezing. The costumes were thin, making filming feel like burning their lives away.

“Do you have any more warming patches?” Shen Mofeng leaned slightly, looking at the empty cardboard box in the corner, and without waiting for Ye Chen’s answer, he said, “I’ll have Xiao He send another box over… Put on a few more. After all, you’re thin, and no one can tell.”

Receiving another box of warming patches, Ye Chen was delighted. “Thanks, Shen Ge.”

“No need to thank me.” Shen Mofeng smiled at him, his words carrying a hint of reproach, but his tone was indulgent. “You and your assistant… Going into the mountains to film outdoor scenes in the dead of winter, and you don’t even remember to bring warming patches.”

Ye Chen obediently said, “I’ll remember next time.”

With the current scale of planting, they should be able to afford it in the future!

The room fell silent for a few seconds. Shen Mofeng reached for the script he had brought with him and said softly, “Chen Chen.”

“…Hmm?” Ye Chen’s ears perked up.

Shen Mofeng said seriously, “Practice lines together?”

Ye Chen nervously ran his hand through his hair and glanced at the time. “Isn’t it a bit rushed? Shouldn’t we go to makeup? Besides, we went through these scenes yesterday.”

Shen Mofeng nodded and smiled again. “Chen Chen.”

Ye Chen scratched his slightly warming ears and whispered, “Hmm?”

Shen Mofeng said, “Give me a cigarette.”

Ye Chen handed him the cigarette.

Shen Mofeng continued, “Chen Chen.”

Ye Chen surrendered, “I know, the lighter!”

Shen Mofeng laughed.

Ye Chen quickly handed over the lighter, feeling a bit flustered. He couldn’t stop fidgeting, looking at his phone while fidgeting with this and that.

Since his birthday when he unlocked the new nickname, Shen Mofeng had been calling Ye Chen that in private. When he had nothing else to call him, he would deliberately call him a few times like today. His deep, magnetic voice seemed to contain a hint of mischief between each syllable, and when he softened his tone and added a touch of a smile, it was even more charming. Ye Chen had been feeling all over the place these days.

Not that he minded being called by Shen Mofeng like that. He even found it somewhat pleasant and endearing, especially since Shen Mofeng always called him by his full name when there was a third person present, sparing him from embarrassment. But…

Well, it was just all over the place! Ye Chen took a deep breath, staring at the screen of his phone, not knowing what he was looking at.

Actually, Shen Ge just liked teasing people, joking around… Ye Chen vaguely remembered the somewhat ambiguous words Shen Mofeng had sent him on WeChat on his birthday night. He might have been suspicious at first, but Shen Mofeng had come to see him that night and explained that it was all just a joke, asking him not to overthink it.

Thinking of this, Ye Chen relaxed a bit.

“Shen Ge teasing me and me feeling embarrassed is normal. I’m a guy, being called a nickname with repeated characters, I’m definitely going to feel embarrassed. It’s the ones who don’t feel embarrassed that have a problem…” Little Fresh Meat Ye’s blind analysis and random operation successfully pressed to a stop the young heart, which had just fluttered a bit with great difficulty.

…

After dinner, the night’s shooting tasks began.

Chen Jing’an requested that the moonlight be bright enough during the shooting of these night scenes, but the existing lighting equipment on set couldn’t create the effect that would satisfy Chen. Therefore, the production team specially brought in a large crane from the city and used its boom to lift the light source to a sufficiently high position above the ground to create the effect of bright moonlight illuminating the earth.

Ye Chen and Shen Mofeng finished their styling and stood outside the shooting location, finalizing the last details with Chen.

The biting north wind in the mountain hollow made people’s faces sting. The wind blew through the desolate crowns of trees beside Ye Chen, making a rustling sound.

This was a seemingly ordinary shoot, but Ye Chen was somewhat absent-minded as Chen Jing’an spoke. He reached back to press the warm patch stuck on his back, fearing that any edges lifting would affect the look. Shen Mofeng stood about a meter away from him, catching sight of his little movements and even smiled at him.

Everything was ordinary until suddenly, everything changed.

This change came very suddenly, without warning. Perhaps it was the particularly fierce wind moments before that disrupted some delicate balance of forces, or perhaps the not-so-sturdy ice finally couldn’t bear any more weight, or perhaps it was a combination of both… In any case, without warning, a behemoth that had been called in to work suddenly, silently, and slowly leaned to the left. The heavy steel boom, carrying the dazzling light source at its top, fell down in a dangerous and clumsy manner.

The light source in the air fell towards the ground, and in the rapidly changing light and shadow, the boom crashed towards the large tree beside Ye Chen with a clear cracking sound of wood splitting, coming dangerously close. Ye Chen looked up, his fair face quickly covered by the approaching shadow of the tree trunk.

…Am I shooting 《Final Destination》?!

Ye Chen wanted to dodge, but it was too late. However, just then, he was suddenly bumped by someone and was pushed to lie flat on the snowy ground, looking upwards.

“F*ck!” Shen Mofeng cursed, veins popping on his forehead, his two muscular arms tightly supporting the ground. In the instant the broken tree hit him, his upper body suddenly sank down, with only a few centimeters separating his chest from Ye Chen’s chest. He bore the full weight and impact of the tree trunk. His trembling arms were holding up the weight, his eyes shining brightly and piercing.

Things happened too suddenly, so Ye Chen didn’t notice that when the tree trunk touched Shen Mofeng, a faint glow appeared around his body and quickly disappeared.

Fortunately, the crew reacted quickly. Even the older Chen immediately rushed over to move the tree. Shen Mofeng held on for only a few seconds before the heavy burden on his back suddenly lightened. He immediately released all the strength supporting his arms, heavily pressing down on Ye Chen’s body, his nose against Ye Chen’s shoulder, breathing heavily. Their bodies were tightly pressed together, without even a trace of space between them.

“Shen Ge?” Ye Chen exclaimed, “Are you okay?!”

“I’m fine,” Shen Mofeng actually chuckled, but the laughter sounded muffled due to the clothes on Ye Chen’s body, “Lower your voice a bit, it’s deafening.”

Amidst the noisy screams around them, someone shouted to get a car to take them to the hospital. Ye Chen’s soul barely returned to his body, and he asked in a trembling voice, “Can you move? Is your spine okay? Where did it hit you?”

Being hit by a heavy object on the back was quite dangerous. Apart from other injuries, if it damaged a vertebra, he might not be able to stand up for the rest of his life.

“Everything is all right,” Shen Mofeng gently rubbed Ye Chen’s shoulder with his chin, but the movement was very small, so small that Ye Chen suspected it was just his imagination, “Chen Chen, don’t be afraid.”

At this moment, someone came to support Shen Mofeng. He didn’t take the person’s hand but used his left hand to support himself, while his right hand hung by his side, swaying as he stood up.

Ye Chen was unharmed and also stood up, staring straight at Shen Mofeng’s seemingly inconvenienced right arm. He said hoarsely, “Shen Ge, your right hand…”

“I exerted too much force… it’s nothing.” Shen Mofeng smiled calmly.

Several other staff members were also affected by the accident just now, luckily without serious injuries or fatalities. The scene was chaotic. Shen Mofeng was quickly escorted into the back seat of a car by the anxious Xiao He and Xiao Liu. Ye Chen hurriedly followed and sat in the back seat.

“You go back.” Shen Mofeng frowned, unusually shooing someone away.

“I’m going too.” Ye Chen’s face was pale. “I’ll help you with errands.”

“Come in, Chen Ge! Hurry up!” Xiao He didn’t know why Shen Mofeng was procrastinating and quickly urged Ye Chen to get in the car.

“You…” Shen Mofeng’s face was cold, wanting to say something, but Ye Chen had already gotten in.

Xiao He stepped on the accelerator and rushed to navigate to the nearest large hospital.

“Cigarette.” After a moment of silence, Shen Mofeng kicked the back of the passenger seat. “Get me one.”

Both he and Ye Chen were wearing costumes, with no place to put cigarettes.

Xiao Liu searched around and said, “I only have Yellow Crane Tower, is that okay?”

It was Xiao Liu’s own cigarette, nothing special.

“Doesn’t matter.” Shen Mofeng’s tone faintly revealed some impatience. Beads of cold sweat formed on his forehead. Even with the child beside him, he couldn’t hold it in anymore and said hoarsely, “…..It hurts like hell.”

Xiao He cursed impatiently, stepping on the accelerator even harder.

The author has something to say:

Lu Shisan, the great hero, is requesting nutrient solutions… _(:з」∠)_

Ye Qiongqiong’s account book today:

Shen Ge was injured, too preoccupied to keep track. Will make up for it tomorrow… QAQ

Shen Mofeng’s account book today:

– Stir frying chili, the red eyes invoked temptation to bully.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability: +19

Current favorability: 40/1500, four stars.

– Unexpectedly turned me away at the door… But he’s just too cute.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability: +20

Current favorability: 60/1500, four stars.

– Called him Chen Chen, and his reaction was too obedient…

Shen Mofeng’s favorability: +20

Current favorability: 80/1500, four stars.

– He got so nervous when I got injured trying to save him.

Shen Mofeng’s favorability: +50

Current favorability: 130/1500, four stars.

Calm Shen Mofeng: I was thinking, when I save someone, shouldn’t the one being saved increase their favorability towards me? Why did I get a +50 in reverse order for saving someone? 🙂

[Mini Theatre]

Young heart: Thump, thump, thump…

Ye Qiongqiong: Don’t move! Move again and I’ll shoot!

Young heart: …