Chapter 23

Before Lu Wei could answer, Lin Si pointed to the bowl. “I only bought one bowl,” he said, adding, “and one spoon.”

Lu Wei turned his head back, his last expression saying it all: regret for turning around, regret for looking at Lin Si, and absolutely no desire to eat.

Lin Si shook the bowl in his hand and grudgingly sat back down at the table, eating his noodles slowly. On the TV, some professor was discussing stock market trends, which Lin Si couldn’t understand. Nor did he want to talk to Lu Wei.

He had wanted to ask Lu Wei why he agreed to live with him.

But it was clear that the tense atmosphere between them was not conducive to heartfelt conversations.

While washing the dishes in the kitchen, Lin Si noticed the sound of the TV in the living room. It made him feel that life was slightly different. Living alone might have its joys, but having some other sounds around seemed to make the loneliness less palpable.

Besides, even someone like Lu Wei could sit in front of the TV at night, like an ordinary person, listening to these academics’ not-so-professional predictions…

The thought made Lin Si smile unexpectedly.

And he couldn’t help but think that if Lu Wei stopped wearing all-black clothes, he might seem a bit more human.

When Lin Si finished washing the dishes and came out, Lu Wei had just turned off the TV. Seeing Lin Si approach, he stopped in his tracks.

Lin Si had intended to let Lu Wei pass first, but both of them ended up standing still.

“…”

Lin Si shifted to the side slightly, only to hear Lu Wei’s low voice above him:

“You can use the apartment next door.”

“Huh?”

Lin Si looked up at him, interpreting the statement as an eviction notice. While he didn’t like the idea of living with Lu Wei, moving again to the apartment next door seemed pointless and possibly detrimental to his condition. Wouldn’t it all be for nothing?

He stared at Lu Wei, unsure of what to do. “But I just moved in, and this… is my house…”

“It’s just that this was only a temporary swap with you. The original studio apartment was probably a prize I won,” Lin Si muttered.

Lu Wei’s brows furrowed again, reminding Lin Si of something: Lu Wei seemed to have never shown him any happy—or even neutral—expression.

Always annoyed.

Lu Wei thought explaining to Lin Si was a waste of time, so he kept it concise: “Liao Ji called. He said your previous apartment had a dance studio.”

With that, Lu Wei glanced at the wall to the left of the living room, then left without another word.

Lin Si stood frozen, not yet fully processing what had been said. Following Lu Wei’s gaze toward the wall, he realized it pointed to the adjacent unit—the apartment Lu Wei had used as a front to cover his tracks.

The sound of the door closing snapped Lin Si out of his daze. Lu Wei was gone. Swallowing hard, Lin Si quietly walked out and stood for a moment in front of the sensor at 2502’s door. The lock clicked open, and the lights turned on as he pushed the door inward.

The interior was identical to their current unit, even down to the furniture, though the layout was slightly different. Lin Si took off his shoes and padded inside in his socks. When he entered one of the rooms, his reflection greeted him.

The bedroom had been converted into a dance studio. Though it was different from his old one, it was equipped with modern features and an array of customizable settings. The cutting-edge design left Lin Si pleasantly surprised. He stepped inside, testing the comfortable warmth of the flooring beneath his feet.

He turned and opened the room across the hall.

It was a fully equipped studio, complete with the latest technology, including ultra-thin soundproof electronic panels on the walls.

The unexpected surprise filled Lin Si with delight. He darted back and forth between the two rooms several times, marveling at the meticulous setup.

Afterward, he trailed his fingers along the door handle and wandered back to the living room, where he paused, an indistinct emotion welling up inside him. Scratching the back of his head, he slowly returned to his own apartment.

Happiness was one thing, but why had Lu Wei prepared all this?

Standing in front of Lu Wei’s door, Lin Si hesitated for a couple of seconds, hand raised to knock. In the end, he gave up and let his hand fall.

Just as his hand hung mid-air, the door suddenly opened from the inside.

Lu Wei hadn’t expected Lin Si to be standing there. He stopped short, even taking a step back.

“…”

Lin Si instantly dropped his hand, guiltily tucking it behind his side as though caught red-handed.

“What are you doing?” Lu Wei asked from inside the doorway.

Lin Si looked up at him, pressing his lips together before saying softly, “I went to check out the apartment next door… I wanted to thank you.”

Lu Wei pinched the bridge of his nose, a subtle gesture that seemed to carry a trace of exasperation. He sighed lightly, almost imperceptibly, and replied in a low, slightly raspy voice, “Duan Yang arranged it. Thank him.”

It was rare for Lu Wei to speak to Lin Si like this—casually, with a hint of warmth that felt out of place.

For a moment, Lin Si was stunned, almost feeling like Y was standing right in front of him.

But Lu Wei had no intention of engaging in some tender gaze. He stepped forward, closing the gap between them as he attempted to leave. Lin Si, caught off guard, instinctively leaned back, his upper body retreating while his legs stayed rooted to the spot. He still blocked the doorway.

Lu Wei’s lips twitched in annoyance. Lin Si remained frozen, staring at him as though waiting for him to say something more. But all he got was the sight of Lu Wei closing his mouth again, abandoning the idea of making any cutting remarks on this exhausting night.

Instead, Lu Wei stepped forward again, signaling with his movements that he wanted to pass.

Lin Si didn’t budge, and their distance shrank further.

Losing patience, Lu Wei lowered his voice and said firmly, “Move.”

The command snapped Lin Si back to his senses. He shifted his weight, planting his heels firmly as he stumbled back a few steps. At the same time, his thoughts denied what he had just felt: This isn’t Y. Y wouldn’t talk like this.

---

The entertainment industry didn’t follow a normal work schedule. Lin Si had been busy with it since the third day of the Lunar New Year.

The Looking New Year magazine photoshoot was scheduled for the afternoon, but Lin Si went to the company in the morning. As he left, he paid special attention to Lu Wei’s door. It was shut, but the shoes by the door were gone.

He hadn’t expected Lu Wei to head to work even earlier than him.

As Lin Si got into the car, he started a chat with Y:

[Good morning.]

Y replied quickly:

[Good morning.]

On the game interface, Lin Si’s avatar was dressed festively in red, like a little lucky doll for the New Year. In contrast, Y’s avatar remained starkly minimal—bare, a plain white ball.

Lin Si remembered he had some leftover in-game currency from a previous top-up and decided to browse the shop for a matching outfit.

He picked out a pair of sweaters: his avatar wore a white one, while Y’s was dressed in a cozy coffee-colored sweater.

Y might have preferred black, Lin Si thought, but black seemed too dull. So, he made the executive decision, bought the outfits, and sent one to Y as a gift.

He then returned to the chat:

[Hurry up and accept it! Hurry, hurry!]

Y sent back a message, copying the system prompt for gifts:
[Dear, this is a winter sweater, a warm embrace of love. You are my one and only. Please accept this token of affection, and let us stay warm together this winter.]

Lin Si hadn’t expected such an effect. He immediately responded:
[666][That’s so poetic!]

Y hesitated for quite some time before accepting the gift. During this pause, he might have been contemplating whether to teach Lin Si what “cringeworthy love lines” truly meant.

Lin Si urged him: [Try it on!]

They both changed into their new outfits, and their avatars snuggled up together, bumping gently against each other.

[Mwah~ So cozy.]

Lin Si felt it was money well spent and headed back to the shop to buy a matching hat for Y.

Y: [?]
Lin Si: [?]

Y then sent another copied message:
[Dear, this is a hat that will never turn green, just like my heart and my love for you.]

Lin Si was utterly confused: [??????]

[The shop just showed it as a normal red hat.]

Still, Y accepted the gift, perhaps embracing the philosophy that if he accepted quickly enough, the awkwardness couldn’t catch up to him.

Y: [Thank you.]

Lin Si covered his mouth, laughing, and replied: [You’re welcome, it’s a New Year gift.]

As soon as he sent the message, Liao Ji placed a script on his lap. “You’re smiling wider than your face.”

Lin Si quickly told Y, [I have to get busy, talk later.], before picking up the script.

“Leaning on the Car Window?” Lin Si ran his fingers over the gold-embossed title. “What kind of script is this?”

“A Ye Gaotan script. Can it be ordinary? Wake up.” Liao Ji rolled his eyes. “Whether you can even land this role is still up in the air.”

Lin Si immediately flipped to the inner pages. Seeing the bolded “Director: Ye Gaotan,” he realized this was no ordinary project.

“This is exciting,” he murmured, feeling a twinge of nervous energy.

Seeing Lin Si rubbing his hands together like a fly, Liao Ji took the initiative to flip the pages for him. “Your character is You Yu, the younger brother of the protagonist You Shan.”

Lin Si scrunched up his face. “Squid?”

“Yes…” Liao Ji replied, exasperated. “But that’s not the point. The main thing is, Director Ye hasn’t said which part you’ll play. His audition process is notoriously unpredictable—you might not even perform anything from the script.”

Lin Si held the script like it was a precious treasure. “That’s fine. Whether it’s a squid or a goldfish, I’ll read it carefully.”

Despite his words, Lin Si read very slowly. By the time they arrived at Shengshi Entertainment, he had only made it through three pages.

They handed out red envelopes to the team and took group photos. Lin Si was held up further signing over a hundred autographed photos for the archives.

As he was finally about to leave, he heard someone outside the door exclaim, “So lively in here!”

The speaker was Bai Fan. Lin Si glanced up at him and casually handed him a red envelope. “Happy New Year.”

Bai Fan smiled, bowing slightly. “Happy New Year, Si-ge.” After speaking, he stood to the side without leaving.

Once the staff finished collecting things, Bai Fan finally moved and nodded toward Lin Si. “Si-ge, could I borrow a moment of your time?”

Lin Si hesitated, then handed his red envelopes to Liao Ji. “What’s the matter?”

“It’s something I’d feel awkward saying here,” Bai Fan insisted on speaking privately.

Lin Si glanced at Liao Ji before following Bai Fan.

They stopped at a quiet corner. The window was slightly ajar for ventilation, letting in a steady stream of cold air. Lin Si shut it instinctively, then turned around, leaning his back against the window. “What’s up?”

“Si-ge, you know I was under Mr. Li before. Now that he’s gone, Mr. Zhang doesn’t pay much attention to us,” Bai Fan said, looking troubled as he stepped closer to Lin Si. “I know your contract is up next year, but I can’t leave. I want to ask for your help—give me a chance. I’d like to collaborate with you on a song.”

When it came to Bai Fan, Lin Si didn’t feel much. Although they were from the same cohort of artists, Lin Si’s career had always been managed by Liao Ji, and issues were escalated directly to Lu Shaoming. Bai Fan, on the other hand, had followed Li Zhong’s leadership. Aside from collaborating on a few songs in their early days, they had no further interactions.

“I don’t have any plans to release new songs recently,” Lin Si stated flatly, his expression emotionless. “It’s hard for me to help you with this.”

Bai Fan grabbed Lin Si’s arm, his tone pleading. “But I heard the theme song for your movie hasn’t been recorded yet.”

Lin Si turned slightly, freeing his arm from Bai Fan’s grip. “That song hasn’t been decided as mine to sing. Even if it were, I don’t own the rights to it and can’t make decisions.”

Bai Fan, seemingly oblivious to the cold rejection in Lin Si’s words, grabbed him again, moving closer. “But you’re close to the director and the investors. If you just—”

“I’m not close to them,” Lin Si interrupted, his tone firm. He wanted to shake Bai Fan off outright but instead maintained his composure, gently pulling Bai Fan’s hand away before turning to leave.

Liao Ji quickly came over, eyeing the corner cautiously. He then lowered his voice to ask, “What did he want to talk about?”

Lin Si took the black coat from Liao Ji’s hand, draped it over himself, and started walking downstairs. “I’ll tell you later.”

Once they got into the car, Lin Si recounted the encounter. Liao Ji frowned as he listened. “You’ve always disliked that composer. That’s why Thinking of You has been on hold. How is Bai Fan so certain it’s going to be yours?”

Lin Si shook his head. “Something feels off.”

“I agree. I know his agent—they’re fairly attentive. Besides, Zhang Tingxi hasn’t sidelined Li Zhong’s artists. Bai Fan shouldn’t be in such a desperate situation,” Liao Ji mused, still pondering.

Lin Si pulled out the script. “Forget about him. I have more important things to deal with.”

After the afternoon shoot and interview, Lin Si returned home as the sky darkened.

Liao Ji had pre-ordered some fruit for him. After waving goodbye at the parking lot, Lin Si slowly made his way upstairs.

As he pressed the elevator button, he noticed someone approaching out of the corner of his eye. He quickly pressed the “open door” button, and when he looked up, it was Lu Wei.

Lin Si froze for a moment and instinctively moved from the center of the elevator to the side near the buttons, creating a polite distance between them.

The doors closed again, and the two stood in silence. A cautious distance separated them, like strangers. Both wore black cashmere coats, and the soft yellow light from the elevator illuminated them, making it seem as though they could step out at any moment into a glamorous event.

When the elevator reached the 25th floor, Lu Wei remained still, showing no intention of leaving. Lin Si was the first to step out. He jogged over to the parcel locker, retrieved the box of fruit, and was about to unlock his door when Lu Wei called out to him.

“There’s another package.”

Lin Si turned to look, puzzled, as he couldn’t recall ordering anything else.

Just as he remembered the virtual reality headset he had agreed to buy with Y a few days ago, Lu Wei had already bent down and retrieved the box for him.

---

Author’s Note:
I’ve worked it out with my editor—our story will officially go premium tomorrow, with a 10,000-word update!

T/n: New chapter is up 🤩☺️. If you want to support me buy me a Ko-Fi or go to my paypal page. Happy Reading 🙂‍↔️😁❤️🙂‍↕️💁