Chapter 38

This is a question, a question that seems to invite him to bed for revelry night after night, and may even develop into daytime debauchery.

Yan Zhao had to turn his slightly drunken brain to analyze Shen Yuanting’s intentions. Almost all the clues pointed to one conclusion—

Yan Zhao tapped Shen Yuanting’s left chest. Under that piece of skin, his heart beat steadily and strongly. He asked subtly, “Are you up to no good?”

Shen Yuanting replied, “I’m not a saint.”

His expression was calm, but his actions were not as indifferent as he appeared—he took Yan Zhao’s hand and placed a kiss on the smooth and fair back of his hand, his soft lips touching the knuckle of the ring finger, conveying silent words along the blood flow.

Warmth flowed from the fingertips. Yan Zhao hugged his neck tightly, leaning in to kiss his chin. “I’ve been providing you with a strip tease for so long, you have to pay it back.”

Don’t wait for a damn night.

Bedroom.

Shen Yuanting’s kisses fell gently on his cheeks, corners of his mouth, and finally on his lips. Gentle, yet irresistible and domineering, he slowly pried open the prey’s defense, and when Yan Zhao’s nerves relaxed, he pushed further.

The necklace on his neck was pulled, through a layer of misty moisture, Yan Zhao saw Shen Yuanting holding the silver chain on his neck, the circular ornament reflecting a halo under the light.

Shen Yuanting said, “I’ll change this. I’ll give you a better one another day.”

Yan Zhao lazily said, “This was provided by the brand sponsor, Dad.”

Shen Yuanting let go, and the necklace returned to its original position. His hand rested on the young man’s chest, “Is the brand sponsor more important than me?”

“No…” Yan Zhao gasped, “Don’t touch randomly.”

…

In a trance, Yan Zhao felt like a vodka-soaked strawberry, intoxicated and ready to be consumed, squeezed of its juices.

But given that everything was unexpected, even Shen Juju, with his foresight, hadn’t prepared for it. They helped each other out and quickly settled the matter.

However, Yan Zhao was still certain that Shen Yuanting was a beast.

Late at night, the switch was pressed, the warm orange light of the desk lamp disappeared, leaving a quiet darkness.

Yan Zhao and Shen Yuanting lay facing each other, their black eyes revealing unabashed affection, passionate yet innocent.

Shen Yuanting smiled lightly at him, “Aren’t you going to sleep?”

Yan Zhao replied, “I want to look at you a bit more before sleeping, so I can see you in my dreams.”

Shen Yuanting smiled and leaned closer, brushing aside his bangs and planting a goodnight kiss on his forehead.

Yan Zhao followed suit with a kiss on his cheek, “Good night.”

Yan Zhao closed his eyes for a while, then opened them again, coincidentally meeting Shen Yuanting’s gaze.

He hadn’t slept either.

Yan Zhao couldn’t help but smile, he stretched out his hand from under the covers to intertwine his fingers with the man’s.

Shen Yuanting coaxed him, “Go to sleep.”

“Mmm.” Yan Zhao closed his eyes again, but after a few seconds, he lifted his eyelids again, “You should sleep too.”

Shen Yuanting closed his eyes after hearing this, leaving only darkness in his line of sight. It was a peaceful night, with only the sound of the wind brushing against the flowers outside the window, and the gradually steady breathing of the person beside him.

As the pendulum swung clockwise, the clouds in front of the moon disappeared without a trace.

Shen Yuanting opened his eyes, and the young man was already asleep. His eyelashes hung quietly under his eyes, and his soft lips were closed, as if waiting for his kiss.

He slept peacefully, with no signs of snoring or talking in his sleep, and even his movements were few and quiet.

“Why are you so well-behaved…” Shen Yuanting hugged him and kissed his lips. The person in his arms remained unaware, still immersed in dreams.

As if infected by his sweetly sleeping boyfriend, Shen Yuanting’s brain, which had been suffering from insomnia all year round, was also infected with a hint of sleepiness. He hugged Yan Zhao tightly, and his vision gradually became blurred.

The next day, the alarm clock rang, and Shen Yuanting abruptly opened his eyes, the morning sunlight streaming into the room diagonally.

Shen Yuanting never set an alarm.

Yan Zhao reached out and found the phone on the bedside table. With a slide of his finger, the alarm stopped.

His hand retracted, and with closed eyes, he unbuttoned his pajamas. As he did so, a rough hand slipped into his clothes and rested on his abdomen.

Yan Zhao instantly woke up. He flipped over, pressing the man beneath him, lifting Shen Yuanting’s chin with a domineering tone, saying, “Man, don’t provoke me.”

Shen Yuanting rubbed the young man’s waist gently, “What if I want to?”

Feeling something hard against his thigh, Yan Zhao said, “Then I’ll run away.”

Yan Zhao kissed the man and then, like a nimble fish, slipped out of the bed and hid in the bathroom.

He faced the mirror, with his pajamas half-hanging on his body, and the exposed skin was full of ambiguous marks.

Yan Zhao carefully checked the area around his neck and collarbone. Unlike the various shades elsewhere, that part remained clean and white, as if nothing had happened.

When Shen Yuanting was on the battlefield with the gun, he almost went deep into the enemy camp to combat the root of a problem, would he really consider him?

…

Most of the scenes in the movie “Tian Yuan” were shot indoors, and the crew had set up a tea house that looked quite authentic.

Yan Zhao lifted the curtain and entered the room. Around the various cameras, members of the crew sat, including Ning Yunfan.

Yan Zhao remembered that his name wasn’t on the list of actors provided by the crew, but he couldn’t be bothered to be surprised. He just felt sorry for the person who was pushed out.

Yu Youyi greeted him to discuss the shooting schedule again: “Xiao Ning’s schedule is busier. Can we focus on shooting the scenes between the male lead and the second male lead for the first month? Is that okay?”

Yan Zhao, the male protagonist, was going to be involved throughout the entire process, so any arrangement wouldn’t affect him much. He replied, “Okay.”

So, the actors went to shoot their makeup photos first.

Although Gu Bailing, played by Yan Zhao, was banned from competitions, he owned a teahouse. Despite its somewhat remote location, he could still sustain himself. Therefore, the stylist didn’t make him look too miserable. However, compared to the second male lead, the difference was quite big.

The second male lead was set as a genius junior, achieving success effortlessly in everything he did. Coming from a wealthy family, and he entered the chess world just for fun.

After finishing the makeup, Yu Youyi looked at the two main actors, left and right, feeling that something was off.

Ning Yunfan wore a well-fitted suit, while Yan Zhao had a casual jacket on. His hair was intentionally styled a bit messy, but no matter how you looked at it, the latter seemed more sharp and outstanding.

Yu Youyi suspected that even if Yan Zhao appeared wearing a pair of plastic flip-flops, people would mistake him for wearing Gucci sandals… But it was normal for the character of Gu Bailing. In the script, he was a high-spirited man. Even when he is forced into a desperate situation, he is able to handle it with ease. He is the most stable person in the whole drama.

Yu Youyi found the stylist and asked, “Can you make Xiao Ning look more aggressive?”

The stylist understood what she meant. Ning Yunfan’s individual style was elegant, but when compared to Yan Zhao, he looked like a real estate salesman…

The stylist said, “I’ll give it another try.”

So Ning Yunfan was asked to go back to the makeup room to restyle, while Yan Zhao went directly to shoot his makeup photos. When he finished, he nestled in a rattan chair and read the script for a while, surprised that Ning Yunfan was still fussing around.

Yan Zhao: “…Why isn’t he done yet?”

Yu Youyi couldn’t just say that he outshone others, so she chuckled awkwardly and said, “We have several options here, all of which we think are good. Just trying them out.”

Yan Zhao nodded. It was quite normal for Ning Yunfan, with his privileges, to take his time.

After the styling team finally settled on Ning Yunfan’s look, Yan Zhao had already taken a nap.

With some time before shooting, Yan Zhao checked his messages. It wasn’t surprising to see greetings to Ning Yunfan in the Salt Soda group chat.

He looked up and saw that Ning Yunfan’s assistant had posted on Weibo: [Always busy, clouds turning into rain clouds.] The post included a picture of Ning Yunfan wiping his sweat and trying on different clothes today.

That wasn’t a big deal, but what caught his attention was when a fan asked about Yan Zhao’s situation, the assistant replied: [Already lying down for a nap [sleepy pig emoji].]

Compared to Ning Yunfan’s diligent attitude, this was quite ironic. Clouds praised their beloved idol as a hardworking little bee, while Yan Zhao, well…

The Salt Soda group chat reacted with eye rolls.

Sweetie: [So angry, take him out and chop him.]

House of Fairy Zhao: [Zhao Zhao is responsible for looks and acting skills, Ning Yunfan is responsible for being tired. Perfect division of labor.]

Jia Ge: [Who knows if he’s telling the truth or just making things up. @IHaveSalt, frontline observer Sister Yan, how’s our idol doing?]

IHaveSalt: [Just woke up.]

Jia Ge: [No wonder my roses bloomed; the sleeping beauty has awakened.]

IHaveSalt: …

Daily Rainbow Fart (1/1)

Yan Zhao saw that it was about time and informed them that they were starting to shoot, then switched his phone to silent mode.

He stretched lazily, glanced at the sun, and thought the weather was perfect for venting frustration.

“Cut!”

“Cut, cut, cut!”

“Let’s do it again!”

Inside the studio, the clapperboard closed repeatedly. Yu Youyi tactfully suggested, “Xiao Ning, do you want to try getting into the feeling again?”

Yan Zhao returned to his seat, took a sip of tea, and looked at the people standing on the field indifferently.

Ning Yunfan had sweat on his forehead, and his makeup was a little mottled. He said, “… I’ll take a break, I’m  sorry Director Yu.”

Yan Zhao went back to shoot scenes with other actors, and the process went smoothly, usually only taking one or two attempts.

“Tian Yuan” in the original work gained immense popularity not only because it catered to the market but also because its actors were seasoned performers. Director Yu Youyi was patient but demanding, never letting anything slide easily, which resulted in a slow shooting pace.

When Yan Zhao acted opposite someone whose performance was mediocre, he would restrain himself a little without destroying the effect, so as not to steal the scene. But he didn’t have the same patience with Ning Yunfan. He would directly pressure Ning Yunfan, making it difficult for him to keep up. When the comparison was made, Director Yu Youyi naturally opted to reshoot the scenes with lesser performances.

As the one lagging behind, Ning Yunfan felt immense pressure. He had initially believed in his acting abilities but found himself falling short.

He could have approached Yan Zhao for advice, as many minor actors in the crew did, addressing him warmly as “Teacher Yan,” but Ning Yunfan couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he took a leave, falsely claiming illness, and slipped away.

After finishing shooting, Yan Zhao was urged by Song Jing to post on Weibo for publicity. After some thought, he wrote: [With improved filming efficiency, I can afford to lie down a bit longer now.[Sleepy face emoji].]

This was essentially a response to the sarcastic remark made by Ning Yunfan’s assistant, subtly criticizing someone’s inefficiency in filming.

Ignoring the tumultuous comments, Yan Zhao didn’t head home but instead went to a three-star Michelin restaurant where Shen Yuanting was waiting for him.