Still straddling Gong Yue, Ye Shanshan scrolled through the comments on his phone. He’d lost count of how many times he’d thought this—his fans must all be fake. He didn’t feel any of that “gentle affection and endless strength” that Xu Luoyang claimed to receive from his fans.
He nuzzled against Gong Yue’s neck while still tapping away on his phone, when his finger suddenly froze.
“AAAAAHHH after studying that fluorescent yellow round ball that the sweet potatoes came in, I was shocked to discover—it actually has three layers! The outermost layer is glass, the middle is gold, and the innermost is topaz! You’re not seeing things! My eyes are going blind!! I’m running laps!! And! This is it! This is the heirloom I’m passing on to my son, and my son to his son! No question! But seriously, how did my Shan manage to turn such great materials into something so… indescribable?”
“Can I just say my dad almost threw away the packaging box? He said it was too blinding to leave at home! I had to run to the trash to fish it out! After all, if Shan gives me something, I’m keeping it by my bed to admire every day!”
After reading them all, Ye Shanshan turned off the screen and tossed the phone aside. Then he wrapped his arms tightly around Gong Yue’s neck, gave a few fake sobs with a pouty hum.
A second later, he felt Gong Yue’s hands wrap around his waist—attention successfully gained!
“Shanshan?”
Ye Shanshan spoke in a deliberately downcast tone, “The sweet potato packaging I designed so carefully—they all say it’s ugly. It was obviously beautiful, wasn’t it? When I first showed you, you said it looked good too!”
Gong Yue patted Ye Shanshan’s back rhythmically, his voice firm and without hesitation. “It really is nice. Not ugly at all.”
Ye Shanshan was easily comforted and his mood instantly brightened. He leaned back a bit, then moved forward to kiss Gong Yue. After the kiss, he grinned like he had just won the lottery. He placed his hand on Gong Yue’s shirt collar, unbuttoned the top button, then did it back up, again and again.
“How is fluorescent yellow not pretty? I remember years ago when I moved into a new room, I specifically asked the butler to decorate it all in fluorescent green. Every time I opened the door, it felt so full of life!”
Gong Yue remembered all of this clearly. By then, Ye Shanshan had mostly adjusted to his completely new living environment. He no longer got distracted every few steps by unfamiliar objects, crouching down to touch and examine them.
Perhaps because he thought it would help him sleep without nightmares, Shanshan insisted on choosing the décor himself. Gong Yue had the butler, Hawke, take note and redecorate the room exactly to Ye Shanshan’s preferences.
A few days later, Shanshan brought him to tour the newly renovated bedroom. The moment the door opened, a shocking burst of fluorescent green hit him.
Ye Shanshan, lost in nostalgic memory, was laughing happily. Then he looked into Gong Yue’s eyes and naturally suggested, “Ge, I’ve been emotionally wounded just now—can you comfort me a little? Proactively?”
Right after he said that, he noticed Gong Yue staring at him intently. Suddenly flustered, he averted his eyes. Then he felt Gong Yue’s left hand rise and touch his face, thumb brushing under his ear and tracing to the corner of his eye.
Ye Shanshan couldn’t resist and urgently leaned in, taking Gong Yue’s lips in his own and tasting them carefully. Then he felt Gong Yue’s hand rest gently at the back of his neck, stroking it softly. His skin was sensitive; the small movements made him tingle and itch, unable to bear it.
His eyes were watery, and his voice turned syrupy sweet. His tongue licked over Gong Yue’s upper lip. “Ge, how about we cultivate together?”
His warm breath seemed to carry tiny hooks.
Gong Yue leaned back against the chair. One hand slipped under Ye Shanshan’s shirt, tracing up his spine slowly, but he said nothing and made no other move.
Not sure whether this meant rejection or something else, Ye Shanshan bit his lip. Then a sudden thought struck him.
“Ge, do you not know what dual cultivation means?” He spoke quickly and clearly explained,
“Dual cultivation is when you and I cultivate together, experiencing the mingling of energies through intimate contact! It produces incredibly powerful results! Way better than just absorbing the essence of the sun and moon!”
Watching him wave his hands animatedly, Gong Yue’s lips curled into a faint smile.
Ye Shanshan froze mid-gesture and noticed the smile. His voice softened, “Ge, you’ve been smiling more lately.”
He leaned in like handling a precious treasure, carefully touching Gong Yue’s lips, his eyes like clear spring water. “You didn’t used to talk much or smile at all,”
Then he smiled himself. “These past few days, I’ve been secretly counting. You smile three to four times a day now.”
He emphasized, “Three to four times is already a lot—it’s basically your entire weekly average from before.”
A tender ache bloomed in Gong Yue’s chest. He tilted his head and kissed Ye Shanshan’s fingertips. Then, with a forceful hug, he lifted him up.
Caught off guard, Ye Shanshan instinctively wrapped his legs loosely around Gong Yue’s waist and asked, “Ge, what are you doing?”
“Hold on tight,” Gong Yue said as he patted Shanshan’s thigh. Then he answered calmly, “Dual cultivating with you.”
Three days later, Ye Shanshan arrived at the MV shooting studio using the address Xu Luoyang gave him. He looked around at the entrance but didn’t see anyone, so he stood still to make a call—only to hear a phone ringing just behind him.
Turning around, he saw the person behind him and froze for a moment, almost not recognizing him. “Chang’an… little brother?”
“Huh?” Xu Luoyang didn’t catch what he said. “What did you say?”
Realizing he’d accidentally said what was on his mind, Ye Shanshan quickly changed the subject, “Why are you so dark-skinned?”
It worked—Xu Luoyang forgot the earlier question. “Don’t even mention it. If you spent half a month eating sand in the Gobi Desert in the northwest, you’d look like me too. My rough skin has totally sabotaged my good looks.”
Ye Shanshan leaned in to inspect. It really was a disaster. “You could transition to being a character actor now.”
“You think my acting is that good?” Xu Luoyang was briefly delighted—until Ye Shanshan added, “No, it’s just that with your current look, being a pretty-boy actor is no longer an option.”
“…” Xu Luoyang seriously considered not speaking to him for five minutes.
They walked inside together, chatting about recent events. Xu Luoyang mentioned the Mountains and Rivers Remain film crew.
“It’s almost summer, but thankfully all the Gobi scenes are wrapped. Otherwise, I’d come back looking like a lump of coal. Next up is a month of filming in the mountains—perfect for staying cool. At this rate, we should finish by July or August, and it’ll likely premiere by year’s end or early next year.”
“Director Zhang told me the same timeline,” Ye Shanshan nodded. “But did he say anything about you coming back like this?”
Director Zhang was famously strict—he didn’t allow actors to work on other projects while on his set. No other shows, no ads—he expected everyone to stay fully in character.
“No worries. Director Zhang himself came back with the three leads to do press. Only the assistant director stayed to shoot some less critical scenes so the schedule wouldn’t fall behind. Once I’m done here, I’ll rejoin them.”
Inside the studio, an unfamiliar director was adjusting the equipment. Xu Luoyang lowered his voice, “That director’s surname is Yang. His family has strong backing. He studied abroad and returned to direct. His temper’s not great, but his work is very good. Zheng-ge spent a long time getting him to take this on.”
Finding this whispering fun, Ye Shanshan also lowered his voice. “Why does he have so much beard? He doesn’t even look thirty.”
“It’s called artistic flair. Director Yang is only twenty-nine.” Then he cleared his throat and greeted Director Yang. Ye Shanshan politely followed with a “Hello.”
Just as Xu Luoyang said, Director Yang only gave a cold “Mm” after a glance.
Xu Luoyang glanced at Ye Shanshan and noticed he was still staring at Director Yang’s beard. He got a bad feeling—if given a chance, Ye Shanshan would probably reach out and tug one.
Director Yang’s assistant stepped in quickly, sensing the awkwardness. “Hello, I’m Zhang Tian—just call me Xiao Zhang. We already have a concept draft. Would you two take a look? If it doesn’t work, we’ll change it—”
Suddenly, Director Yang looked up. “Change what? No changes. What’s set is set. We shoot it as planned.”
Xiao Zhang sighed internally. This was his boss’s infamous temper. He knew Ye Shanshan’s status—offending him could ruin things. Even if the man himself didn’t mind, plenty of sycophants would happily crush anyone who stepped out of line.
Just as he was about to smooth things over, Ye Shanshan stepped forward and patted Director Yang on the shoulder. “Exactly, why change it? We shoot as planned. No changes.”
Xu Luoyang couldn’t help but laugh—Ye Shanshan didn’t even seem to notice the tension or Yang’s cold attitude. Maybe he just thought it was three against one, and took the underdog’s side.
But the next second, Xu Luoyang realized he was wrong.
Ye Shanshan’s voice dropped and he asked Director Yang, not quite confidently, “See? I support you. We’ll shoot it as is. That’s fair, right? So… can I touch your beard? Just once?”
Xu Luoyang almost wanted to cover his eyes. He was ready to drag Ye Shanshan away when—shockingly—Director Yang nodded with zero coldness. “Sure, but only once. No more than three seconds.”
Ye Shanshan’s eyes lit up. He quickly reached out to touch the beard, then curiously asked,
“Isn’t it hot having a beard that long? Doesn’t it get dirty when you eat? Do you trim it daily? And if shampoo is for your head, what do you use to wash your beard?”
Amazingly, Director Yang actually put down his work and answered every single question.
Xu Luoyang and Zhang the assistant stood off to the side, stunned.
“Wasn’t Director Yang supposed to be reclusive and cold, totally allergic to chatty people?”
Zhang nodded. “Yes! He’s usually sharp-tongued, picky, and extremely protective of his beard. I’ve worked with him forever and never been allowed to touch it.”
Xu Luoyang looked at the pair happily chatting about beards and thought: this MV shoot might just turn out to be a real surprise.
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👨🧔♂️🧔♀️🧔 What an interesting chapter it turned out to be.😆