Liang Xiao composed himself, dressed properly, and followed the assistant director to the next shot.
—
The butler spent half an hour searching for Huo Lan, scouring the entire presidential suite before finally encountering him at the elevator doors.
“President Huo!” The butler breathed a sigh of relief and rushed over quickly. “Where did you go? There are a few reports from Xingguan—”
Huo Lan stood at the door for a moment without answering. He took the reports and sat down at the desk.
The weather was exceptionally sunny, and after standing in the sunlight for a while, he carried with him a rare winter warmth that felt lazy and comforting.
The butler was about to ask about lunch preferences when he noticed something unusual. Curious, he asked: “Did you go out?”
Huo Lan’s shoulders tensed slightly: “…Morning exercise.”
The butler glanced at the time and discreetly covered up the noon indicator on his watch face before hesitantly nodding.
President Huo hadn’t slept well last night and had been rudely awakened by Mr. Liang this morning. Afterward, he’d caught up on sleep for a few hours and woke up later than usual.
President Huo was known for his disciplined routine—perhaps waking up late had made him restless enough to feel compelled to go out for morning exercise.
The logic seemed sound.
The butler convinced himself of this explanation and changed the subject: “What would you like for breakfast?”
Huo Lan: “…”
Huo Lan remained silent for a moment before finally admitting with some difficulty: “I went to see Mr. Liang.”
The butler froze in surprise.
“It was my breach of contract,” Huo Lan said solemnly. “Tell Mr. Liang that I—”
The butler quickly interrupted him: “President Huo, did you actually see Mr. Liang?”
Huo Lan paused briefly, furrowing his brows: “I did.”
He lowered his gaze: “I saw… just one glance.”
After waking up, Huo Lan had tried several times to refocus on work but couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened that morning.
He adjusted his schedule so that his assistant would wake him every day at precisely 6:50 a.m., but ultimately, unable to calm his restless thoughts, he set aside his work and went out for a walk.
By the time he regained awareness of his surroundings, he’d already wandered near the set.
The butler had prepared excuses in advance but was stunned by this revelation: “Just one glance?”
Huo Lan looked at the butler silently for a moment before explaining softly: “That one glance was worth it.”
In that fleeting moment, he saw Liang Xiao soaring gracefully with the help of wires—effortlessly twisting his body and rotating his arms amidst sharp steel cables. His movements were fluid and precise as he plucked the tender bud of a willow branch firmly into his palm.
It was almost radiant.
Huo Lan added quietly: “Of all I’ve seen before… none compare to him.”
The butler wasn’t entirely sure how their President Huo could gather so much from just one glance. After a brief hesitation, he refrained from asking unnecessary questions: “That one glance… was it fifty-seven seconds long?”
Huo Lan, confused, asked, “What fifty-seven seconds?”
The butler remained firm: “Just tell me if it was or wasn’t.”
Huo Lan shook his head: “It wasn’t.”
If Liang Xiao had been flying through the air holding onto a willow branch for fifty-seven seconds, he might have already flown back to the hotel by now.
The butler was relieved and began analyzing the situation: “In your agreement with Mr. Liang, only the timeframe was specified. However, during Mr. Liang’s unilateral fifty-seven-second action this morning, you didn’t have the chance to cooperate.”
The butler added: “Not only did you not kiss him, but you didn’t even touch Mr. Liang.”
Huo Lan: “…”
Huo Lan found himself oddly displeased with this phrasing: “I held Mr. Liang.”
The butler pressed further: “Did you hold him properly?”
Huo Lan didn’t want to continue this conversation and fell silent.
The butler, who hadn’t been present in the morning, pieced together details from what he’d learned from Liang Xiao’s manager and summarized for Huo Lan: “This morning, Mr. Liang hugged you and kissed you, but you didn’t manage to do anything in return. In fact, when Mr. Liang landed on you, you even told him to get up.”
With practiced ease, the butler wiped away a layer of frost from his tone: “So those fifty-seven seconds were essentially wasted for you.”
“…” Huo Lan didn’t want to hear any more of this and stood up with a cold expression, ready to leave.
The butler hurriedly finished his point in one breath: “Which means, in principle, you’re entirely within your rights to reclaim that time from Mr. Liang!”
Huo Lan paused mid-step, frowning as he looked back at him.
“Mr. Liang acted unilaterally by landing on you,” the butler continued confidently. “And you acted unilaterally by looking at him—though it wasn’t even for fifty-seven seconds.”
The butler pressed on decisively: “So when you calculate it like that, it’s actually Mr. Liang who owes you!”
Huo Lan found himself momentarily caught up in the butler’s logic yet instinctively felt something was off. His expression remained serious as he stopped by the desk.
In business dealings, there could be many strategies, but commitments had to be honored. Although Huo Lan’s breach of their agreement had been unintentional, he still felt obligated to penalize himself by refraining from visiting Mr. Liang’s room for the next two days.
But… based on the butler’s reasoning, it didn’t seem entirely unreasonable.
Standing by the desk with his head lowered in thought, Huo Lan contemplated silently.
“Mr. Liang still owes you several dozen seconds,” the butler reminded him.
Even the butler couldn’t quite understand how this relationship had devolved into a game of counting seconds. Yet being part of it now, he could only focus on addressing the immediate issue: “If you deduct those seconds owed, you can go see Mr. Liang tonight at 11:59 p.m.”
Huo Lan raised his gaze and looked at the butler.
The butler was well-acquainted with President Huo’s emotions and softened slightly under his scrutiny before nodding firmly: “It’s true.”
Huo Lan very much wanted to see Mr. Liang at 11:59 p.m., unable to resist the temptation. He gave a slight nod of approval and was completely persuaded as he returned to his seat.
With the most pressing matter resolved, the butler breathed a sigh of relief and opened up the reports for him.
Xingguan’s operations largely ran autonomously; aside from major decisions requiring approval, what needed to be reported to President Huo were arrangements related to Mr. Liang.
“There’s a banquet next week—an industry networking event,” the butler explained after reviewing one report and summarizing its key points: “The publicity department suggests that since Mr. Liang is transitioning his image and style, attending such a semi-formal event would be ideal.”
Butler: “The team will arrive in the next couple of days. Once Mr. Liang has time, they’ll take his measurements to tailor a suit.”
Huo Lan remained silent for a moment and didn’t respond.
The butler froze, thinking he might be unwilling: “…President Huo?”
Noticing that Huo Lan seemed to want to say something, the butler tactfully stopped talking and waited patiently.
Huo Lan’s shoulders were still tense. After a long pause, he finally said, “I know Mr. Liang’s measurements.”
The butler: “…”
The butler, who had said a few reckless things earlier to stop President Huo from punishing himself, hadn’t expected that he’d accidentally ignite President Huo’s competitive spirit.
Huo Lan spoke softly again, and when he didn’t see any reaction from the butler, his expression darkened as he looked up.
“Wow!” The butler exclaimed in surprise. “Did you figure them out while holding Mr. Liang?!”
Huo Lan’s ears turned slightly red. He tried his best to stay composed and replied in a steady, low voice: “I also… touched Mr. Liang.”
The butler: “!!”
“It’s true,” Huo Lan said. “Last night, I couldn’t sleep. While holding Mr. Liang, I wanted to check if his health had improved, so I touched him—”
The butler, now fully invested in the conversation, skipped over the background explanation: “What parts did you touch?”
“…” Huo Lan instinctively felt that this conversation was becoming strange. However, remembering the butler’s overly harsh comments earlier that morning, he couldn’t resist elaborating: “I touched everything I should have touched. Mr. Liang is very thin.”
Although acting required maintaining a certain physique, it wasn’t healthy to stay this thin all the time. After some thought, Huo Lan still felt uneasy and added: “Bring in the nutritionist team as well.”
The butler was still reeling from the earlier revelation: “…Understood.”
In truth, the butler wasn’t entirely sure what President Huo’s definition of “everything I should have touched” included.
Shoulders and arms were likely on the list—possibly the waist as well.
Legs might have been included; hips were probably fine.
…As for anything beyond that? Most likely not.
The butler felt both amused and concerned: “Well… Mr. Liang doesn’t particularly like having his measurements taken for tailoring.”
Huo Lan frowned slightly: “Why?”
The butler had made this up on the spot and didn’t actually know why: “Not sure. You’d better… not ask Mr. Liang directly for now.”
At least not until they coordinated their stories with Mr. Liang first.
Huo Lan’s expression darkened slightly before he nodded: “Understood.”
Butler: “That said, we still need to have his suit custom-made.”
Huo Lan: “Use my designer.”
“Of course we’ll use your designer,” the butler agreed with a nod. “And we’ll use the measurements you provided for Mr. Liang.”
Huo Lan had spoken impulsively earlier and now realized it might have been too frivolous. He lowered his voice: “Let’s not bring this up again.”
The butler smoothly shifted gears in response: “Do you know which parts need to be measured for tailoring?”
Huo Lan shook his head.
Butler: “Chest circumference, waist circumference, shoulder width, neck circumference, and leg circumference.”
Huo Lan picked up a pen: “I understand. Tell them—”
The butler, completely unashamed, added: “Hip circumference.”
Huo Lan: “…”
“The abbreviation is HO,” the butler explained professionally. “When measuring, make sure the tape is kept level and relaxed, wrapping it around the fullest part of the hips.”
Huo Lan: “…”
The butler continued seamlessly: “Mr. Liang’s adjustment of his public image not only benefits his personal development but also supports this production.”
Huo Lan closed his eyes briefly, struggling: “I—”
With heartfelt emotion and tears in his eyes, the butler declared: “Mr. Liang desperately needs a tailored suit.”
