Chapter 10

Chapter 10

When Su Xingyao woke up again, it was already the evening of the next day.

The soft glow of the setting sun shone through the window, and the freshest bouquet of sunset-colored coral in the vase beside him emitted a faint fragrance.

Without the pungent smell of disinfectant or the glaring lights, the surroundings felt deeply familiar to Su Xingyao.

He was back at Lu Jiuxu's villa.

Last night, he had thought Lu Jiuxu’s appearance was a hallucination.

But now he was lying in the room he had once stayed in at the Lu family’s house.

Everything confirmed that last night’s events were real, not a hallucination.

Lu Jiuxu had really taken him "home."

Even though he understood that in that situation, Lu Jiuxu had said those words out of a desire to protect him.

But at that moment, even though he knew he didn't have a home, he still silently agreed in his heart.

Su Xingyao looked at his right hand.

There was still an IV catheter on the back of his hand, but he was no longer hooked up to an IV.

Seeing that he could move around freely, he quickly threw off the blanket, got up, and walked to the window, leaning on the windowsill to quietly watch the peonies glowing red in the sunset.

The moment was serene, but Su Xingyao's thoughts just wouldn't stop.

Twice now.

This was the second time Lu Jiuxu had reached out to him.

The first time, he was on the verge of death, ready to leave this world in despair.

The second time, he was dizzy and weak, too exhausted to handle Qin Mingchuan and Shen Huaixi.

But each time, Lu Jiuxu had appeared by his side in time, steadfastly reaching out to him and pulling him away from the pit of despair.

He and Lu Jiuxu were strangers, yet they always seemed to have this strange connection that set them apart from mere strangers.

Just as Su Xingyao was thinking this, he suddenly heard a cat's meow.

Then another.

His thoughts interrupted, he followed the sound and spotted an orange cat napping by the flowerpot on his windowsill...

The cat seemed to notice Su Xingyao's gaze, squinting at him before letting out a soft meow, almost like a greeting.

Su Xingyao felt it was a bit dangerous there, so he wanted to coax the cat down.

Just as he was about to communicate with the cat, he heard a young voice from downstairs.

"Coral, how did you get up there?"

Su Xingyao turned his head and saw a biracial teen around seventeen or eighteen standing downstairs.

He was wearing a sweatsuit, with big eyes, and looked both handsome and adorable.

When Su Xingyao looked at him, the other person also clearly saw his appearance.

Immediately, he waved at Su Xingyao and called out his name accurately.

"Hey! Su Xingyao!"

After saying this, the boy didn't say anything else, and with feet that seemed to be on fire, he vanished from Su Xingyao's view in a flash.

Moments later, Su Xingyao heard his cheerful voice again, carried by the wind.

"Whoa!! Bro!! What's Su Xingyao doing here?!"

The boy was in a rush.

Originally, Su Xingyao was curious about how the boy knew him, but then he suddenly heard him call out "brother"...

Does Lu Jiuxu really have a younger brother?

Su Xingyao was kinda surprised.

He realized his understanding of the novel world's settings, gained during his coma, was still too superficial.

At least regarding everything about Lu Jiuxu, apart from knowing that he was set as the main antagonist, he knew nothing else.

As he was thinking, the boy who had vanished like a gust of wind moments ago arrived outside his room.

Su Xingyao opened the door, seeing surprise flash in the boy's eyes.

"It's really you!!"

Su Xingyao wasn't used to being looked at with such enthusiasm, so he smiled awkwardly.

"Hi, it's me."

The boy chuckled, then remembered to introduce himself, "I'm Lu Zhiyun, I've seen your TV show before."

Su Xingyao had only one TV show air since his debut, but that single show had branded him with the reputation of being a homewrecker.

Not only was he severely criticized by the audience, but it also led to Chu Zian's resentment, ultimately pushing him off a cliff...

This wasn't exactly a memorable role, so Su Xingyao was well aware.

Most viewers of the show were his harshest critics.

Therefore, when Lu Zhiyun looked at him with starry eyes, he felt a little awkward.

However, Lu Zhiyun didn't seem to think about these at all and started showering Su Xingyao with compliments.

"You acted really well in it, I cried when your character died."

"Meow~"

The kitten interrupted Lu Zhiyun's upcoming plot analysis.

It had somehow leapt down from the windowsill, circled slowly around their legs, then suddenly darted down the stairs towards the garden.

Seeing the kitten bolt, Lu Zhiyun quickly gave chase, "Coral!"

After a few steps, he waved Su Xingyao over, signaling him to follow.

Su Xingyao looked at Lu Zhiyun's back, and a name suddenly flashed through his mind.

Sunset and Coral.

No way, what a coincidence!

These two brothers—one has a dog named Sunset, and the other has a cat named Coral...

Su Xingyao didn’t have time to think further, so he followed Lu Zhiyun to the garden downstairs.

He didn’t run, so by the time he arrived, Lu Zhiyun had already picked up Coral and was gently petting its fluffy fur.

In his arms, Coral looked completely lifeless, like it had given up on the world.

While putting on a fierce expression, it lightly scratched his clothes with its paws, its face clearly saying, "I’m not in the mood for this."

Su Xingyao walked over and saved the cat.

"Is this cat named Coral?"

Lu Zhiyun said, "Yes."

"Such a special name, paired with Sunset, it’s like a matching set."

Lu Zhiyun nodded, "Yeah, my brother named them. At first, I didn’t get it and thought it was a bit odd, but later I found out it’s the name of a flower."

After saying that, he pointed to the blooming peonies nearby, "He split the name of this flower and gave one part to his dog and the other to his cat."

Lu Zhiyun’s words instantly shattered Su Xingyao’s previous assumption.

"Your brother also raises the cat?"

When he first learned that Lu Jiuxu had easily adopted a stray dog he found, he was already pretty surprised.

But he never expected that today, he also raises a cat...

Su Xingyao found this discovery quite intriguing.

So, you can’t judge a book by its cover?

The cold and aloof boss Lu Jiuxu is actually a hidden winner in life with both cats and dogs?

In the few seconds Su Xingyao was lost in thought, Lu Zhiyun seemed to notice his surprise and continued.

"You know Sunset was picked up by my brother, right?"

Su Xingyao nodded. When he first met Lu Jiuxu, the other had mentioned this.

Hearing this, Lu Zhiyun laughed as if he had guessed something, "Then he definitely didn’t tell you that Coral was also picked up by him."

Su Xingyao nodded once more.

Seeing that Su Xingyao was listening attentively, Lu Zhiyun immediately began to describe the scene.

"Actually, this is quite interesting. When my brother first picked up Sunset, it was so hungry it was just skin and bones, lying on the ground, looking pitifully at my brother."

"My brother, being the kind-hearted person he is, saw it and somehow softened, deciding to take it home."

"But guess what? Sunset refused to leave, insisting on biting my brother’s pant leg and dragging him towards the garbage pile."

Lu Zhiyun told the story with a lively rhythm, pausing occasionally to blink and ask Su Xingyao in a mysterious tone, "Guess what my brother saw when he went over there?"

Su Xingyao, of course, had guessed, but still played along and asked, "Coral?"

"Yes!!"

Lu Zhiyun made a lying-down gesture, "Coral was lying in the trash, nearly dead."

As Lu Zhiyun spoke, Sunset, fresh from his walk, came over.

He wagged his tail at Su Xingyao in greeting, then trotted over to Coral and gently nibbled his ear.

Coral stayed aloof, swatting Sunset with a paw right away.

Sunset finally settled down, sitting obediently by Coral, whimpering and being cute.

Seeing how well Sunset and Coral got along, Su Xingyao smiled, "Are they good friends?"

"Yes, yes," Lu Zhiyun nodded eagerly, grinning as he teased Sunset.

"Who would’ve guessed, Sunset’s pretty sentimental. Back then, in front of my brother, he had this expression like, 'If you take me, you have to take my buddy too, or I won't go even if I die'... even though he was nearly starving, he still insisted that his rescuer save his buddy too."

Lu Zhiyun said this, but his eyes betrayed his pride in Sunset’s actions.

Sunset, ears perked, listened to Lu Zhiyun, and as soon as he finished, he seized the chance to approach Su Xingyao, lifting his head for pets.

Seeing Sunset’s look, Su Xingyao crouched down to pet him right away.

"It’s good to be loyal, you did great."

Praised, Sunset’s eyes lit up. After happily jumping around, he lay down in front of Coral, letting him climb onto his back.

Then Sunset dashed off with Coral.

"Taking Coral out for a spin again."

Lu Zhiyun, familiar with the cat and dog’s habits, quipped casually.

Su Xingyao was amused by him and asked, "But I’ve never seen Coral before."

"Because Lu Zhiyun took him away by force."

Lu Jiuxu suddenly appeared, answering Su Xingyao.

Still in a sharp suit, his hair perfectly styled, he radiated an elite vibe.

His brother’s sudden appearance startled Lu Zhiyun.

He gasped, patted his chest, and defended himself, "It wasn’t that forceful... just a little pushy."

Lu Jiuxu ignored him, turning his gaze to Su Xingyao.

After a pause, he asked, "Fever gone?"

"Gone."

"Mm, then rest well."

Lu Jiuxu's concern remained subtle and understated.

After asking about Xing Yao's condition, he didn't say much else.

Xing Yao was accustomed to his personality and, seeing that he didn't bring up anything, took the initiative to speak.

"Thank you for your trouble last night, Lu Jiuxu."

Last night was indeed troublesome for Lu Jiuxu.

Although he was too weak to do much later on, he still remembered that Qin Mingchuan had tried to stop Lu Jiuxu when he was carrying him away.

He fell asleep afterward and didn't know what had happened between them.

But he could guess it wasn't anything pleasant.

Recalling that scene, Xing Yao was still immensely grateful for Lu Jiuxu's timely appearance.

Someone of his status could have easily sent an assistant to deal with the situation; there was no need for him to get involved personally...

Lu Jiuxu didn't seem too keen on discussing last night's events and merely nodded slightly to acknowledge it.

"Take care of yourself, and don't catch a chill."

Lu Jiuxu's voice remained low but was particularly pleasant to the ear.

"Lin Chengyi will come tomorrow to check on your wound again."

Xing Yao agreed, "Alright."

The atmosphere between Xing Yao and Lu Jiuxu wasn't particularly lively.

But Lu Zhiyun inexplicably felt as if he had suddenly been left out, experiencing a sense of helplessness in trying to insert himself into their conversation.

To make his presence known, he quickly seized the opportunity to speak, "Brother, you haven't told me why Xing Yao is here."

Why he was here...

This matter was actually quite complicated and couldn't be explained in just a few sentences.

Xing Yao was thinking that if Lu Jiuxu didn't want to explain, he could slowly clarify it to Lu Zhiyun.

However, Lu Jiuxu succinctly dismissed the question with two words.

"Guest."

"Huh?" Lu Zhiyun looked puzzled and clearly didn't buy it.

But his skepticism went unanswered, as Lu Jiuxu had no intention of continuing the conversation.

Fortunately, Lu Zhiyun was already used to his brother's demeanor.

Seeing that he couldn't get an answer, he decided not to push further and instead suddenly became excited, tugging at Xing Yao's sleeve.

"Since you're a guest, this is a rare opportunity. Xing Yao, how about giving me your autograph?"

After saying this, he reached for his jacket but realized he didn't have a pen on him...

Embarrassed, he scratched his head and then fished out his phone from another pocket.

"Forget it, let's just take a selfie together—simple and straightforward!"

Su Xingyao glanced at the phone in Lu Zhiyun's hand, hesitating and not moving...

"Maybe... we should just forget it?" he tentatively asked.

Lu Zhiyun looked puzzled.

"What?? Do you prefer signing autographs?"

Su Xingyao was baffled by the sudden mention of autographs and immediately denied it.

"No."

Seeing this, Lu Zhiyun immediately feigned understanding, "Then you're worried my friends will be green with envy when they see it?"

Su Xingyao was at a loss for words.

Lu Zhiyun was so caught up in his own assumptions that he couldn't let it go.

"It's fine, I'm used to this sort of thing, no worries."

Su Xingyao was speechless.

Su Xingyao was genuinely curious about how this young master's thoughts could jump around so much...

Seeing Su Xingyao still not moving, Lu Zhiyun couldn't help but start another round of speculation.

"Why do you look so hesitant? Is your company restricting you from taking photos with fans?"

If this continued, Lu Zhiyun didn't know what strange reasons he would come up with next.

Su Xingyao suppressed a smile and finally came clean.

"No, I'm just worried you might catch some flak..."

He found Lu Zhiyun rather endearing.

As he spoke, the corners of his eyes crinkled with amusement, and his voice held a playful tone.

"Young master, do you really think I have a good reputation?"

Lu Zhiyun suddenly understood.

But soon he waved his hand nonchalantly, "It's no big deal, I don't give a hoot about that stuff."

After saying that, he winked at Su Xingyao, full of confidence.

"And no one would dare give me grief."

His tone was full of pride.

"If they talk smack, I'll fire right back—no fear."

With that, Lu Zhiyun, as if fearing Su Xingyao might bolt if he waited another second, quickly tossed the phone to Lu Jiuxu across the way, then slung an arm around Su Xingyao's shoulder, striking a chummy pose for the camera.

For something so trivial, Lu Jiuxu wasn't about to lend a hand.

But just as he was about to toss the phone back to the other person, he inadvertently caught the smile in Su Xingyao's eyes.

His light brown eyes curved like crescent moons, and the faint smile at the corner of his lips resembled the freshest moonlight.

His hand, halfway up to toss the phone, ended up lifting a bit higher.

The next second.

Lu Jiuxu, with tightly pursed lips and a stern face, got his first taste of being someone else's photographer.

"Take it."

Not wanting to keep playing photographer for his brother, Lu Jiuxu threw the phone back to him and turned away to answer a call.

Lu Zhiyun brushed off his brother's cold look, eagerly grabbed the phone, and quickly opened the photo gallery to check out the pictures.

The sunset's glow lit up the faces of the two young men, one with a youthful, mixed-race charm, the other with a delicate and beautiful smile.

The scene was really easy on the eyes.

Lu Zhiyun rubbed his chin, satisfied.

"Brother, you're really good at taking photos."

As he talked, he uploaded the photo of him and Su Xingyao to a social media site.

Then he asked Su Xingyao, "How about you follow me on Weibo? Let's follow each other! I've never followed a celebrity before."

Seeing how eager he was, Su Xingyao shook his head regretfully, "I can't follow you back."

Lu Zhiyun thought the other was still worried about him being scolded and emphasized again, "It's okay, I don't care."

"No, that account's been inactive."

Su Xingyao explained to him.

"I haven't logged into that account in ages; I forgot the password."

Lu Zhiyun let out an "ah," a bit let down.

Su Xingyao noticed his expression and finally pulled out his phone.

"But I do have another account."

With that, he opened Weibo and logged into another long-unused account.

This account obviously meant something different to Su Xingyao. Even after over a year of not logging in, he still remembered the password like the back of his hand.

Soon, the two followed each other.

Thrilled, Lu Zhiyun clicked through to his homepage and carefully checked out Su Xingyao's side account, LostTide.

At first glance, he found the name somewhat familiar.

At second glance, he saw the number of followers.

"Eighty thousand followers... do your fans know about this small account?"

Su Xingyao shook his head, "They don't know."

Hearing this, Lu Zhiyun suddenly realized something and said excitedly, "You post songs on here..."

Su Xingyao responded with a soft hum.

"I posted them during college."

With this explanation, Lu Zhiyun finally understood why the account seemed familiar.

Because on Su Xingyao's homepage, he saw a song titled "Limited Summer."

"Wait, 'Limited Summer' is your song?"

Su Xingyao explained more precisely, "A song I wrote for a friend."

He wrote this song five years ago for his friend A Luo in the industry.

Originally, the song was quite niche, but it suddenly became popular two years ago when short video users started using it as background music.

Later, a youth drama team approached him to purchase the song's copyright for use as the ending theme.

The drama became a huge hit, and the ending song became well-known.

However, most casual listeners of popular songs usually only focus on the song itself or the singer, and unless they are professionals, few people pay attention to the lyricist or composer.

So, when Lu Zhiyun found out that Su Xingyao had written the song, his eyes instantly filled with boundless admiration.

"Su Su, you're seriously awesome!!"

Lu Zhiyun's personality was completely different from Lu Jiuxu's.

He got excited easily, and his reactions were always exaggerated.

So his loud praise immediately reached Lu Jiuxu, who was on a call nearby.

He turned to look at them.

The sky had darkened without them realizing.

A cool evening breeze suddenly blew through the garden.

Su Xingyao caught the wind and let out a light cough.

Lu Jiuxu hung up and said to Lu Zhiyun, "Lu Zhiyun, go inside. Don't disturb me here while I'm discussing business."

Scolded, Lu Zhiyun stuck out his tongue at Lu Jiuxu and quickly pulled Su Xingyao into the house.

That evening, after learning Su Xingyao was staying over, Lu Zhiyun decided not to leave and stayed to play games with him for a long time.

It wasn't until Lin Chengyi arrived and firmly told him that Su Xingyao needed more rest that he finally went back to his room to sleep.

Lu Zhiyun fell asleep, but Su Xingyao couldn't sleep.

He had slept too much in the past few days and wasn't tired yet.

So, to kill time, he took out his phone and checked the Weibo account he had logged into earlier that evening.

He didn't follow many people, so the latest post on his homepage was still the photo Lu Zhiyun had taken with him.

The Weibo post didn't get the criticism he expected; instead, it garnered over a dozen likes, and the comments below were quite harmonious. His friends were all praising how handsome they both looked.

Su Xingyao lay down.

Playing games with Lu Zhiyun today was actually a bit tiring.

But his heart felt particularly at ease.

This place wasn't his home.

Yet, everyone here had always shown him kindness, never looking at him through a biased lens.

After giving Lu Zhiyun a like, Su Xingyao opened the private message interface.

The main account he used in the entertainment circle, which had been flooded with hate, was no longer checked for private messages.

Because he knew without looking that the messages were filled with insults—thousands of them.

Some people even harassed him daily, around the clock.

In sharp contrast was this small account he used in the creative community.

Although it had fewer fans, those who sent him private messages were genuine fans.

Over the years, Su Xingyao didn't always reply, but he would carefully read the private messages they sent him.

After replying to two music enthusiasts who had reached out for advice and guidance because of creative blocks, Su Xingyao suddenly noticed that the next private message stood out from the rest.

The sender claimed to be a director from "The Voice of Heaven," and the content was... somewhat odd.

Director Xiao Li:

Dear LostTide,

Do you want to experience the most authentic and pure singing stage?

Do you want to showcase your creative talents perfectly?

Do you want to take part in the most dazzling competition of 20xx?

If interested, please add WeChat: BBQ13579246

"The Voice of Heaven," eagerly awaiting your arrival!

Su Xingyao silently read through these lines, his mind automatically conjuring up the background music and the enthusiastic male voice from various variety show openings...

He carefully examined the message for a while, his gaze drawn to the WeChat ID with the numbers 13579246...

After hesitating for a few seconds, he couldn't help himself.

LostTide: I have the National Anti-Fraud app installed.

On the other side.

The young director, who only saw her idol's reply the next day, was both thrilled and upset.

Thrilled because her idol had seen her invitation and replied.

Upset because her idol thought she was a telecom scammer!

Sigh

Director Xiao Li: If only I had used a more formal invitation message!!

Which genius came up with this idea, saying that humor could quickly bridge the gap with these tycoons??

*

Because of this incident, the director asked Su Xingyao to rest at home for a week.

During his recovery period.

Wang Dao, Ji Linghe, Yu Sisi, and other main actors, along with most of the crew, called or messaged him to check on his health.

However, Jiang Zihang and his team, who started it all, did not send a single message.

As if ignoring the situation would completely absolve them.

A week later, Su Xingyao finally returned to the set.

To celebrate his return, Ji Linghe went so far as to organize a welcome banquet.

"You weren't here these past few days; you have no idea how miserable I was, couldn't even find someone to rehearse lines with."

Ji Linghe immediately started whining to Su Xingyao.

Of course, it wasn't that he couldn't find someone to rehearse with; he just wasn't used to Su Xingyao not being on set.

When he later heard from the staff about what Jiang Zihang had done, his existing annoyance with him grew even more.

After that week, aside from filming, they had no interaction at all on set.

He could tolerate a co-star with poor acting skills, but he couldn't stand someone who was narrow-minded and engaged in workplace bullying.

Although no one said it out loud, Jiang Zihang's image took a nosedive in the eyes of all the actors after this incident.

But Jiang Zihang remained oblivious to this.

He always thought that the little water that night wasn't enough to make Su Xingyao faint in front of so many people.

Moreover, Shen Huaixi had been hinting that Su Xingyao might have been deliberately trying to gain sympathy in front of the investor Qin Mingchuan, so he felt even less remorseful towards Su Xingyao.

Back on set.

Su Xingyao, fresh from makeup, saw Xiao Yu with red eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Seeing Su Xingyao, Xiao Yu quickly composed herself, forcing a smile and shaking her head. "It's nothing," she said.

Su Xingyao looked at her, said nothing, and didn't leave. Feeling guilty under his gaze, Xiao Yu finally told him what happened.

On set, Jiang Zihang had a large entourage, and with so many people, they often subtly ganged up on her.

Since she returned to the set with Su Xingyao, Jiang Zihang's assistants often picked on her over minor things.

For example, they would badmouth her to her face, throw away her cup and other small items on set, or deliberately toss her clothes on the floor and step on them.

There were countless such incidents, and just now, two male assistants deliberately blocked her way and called her Su Xingyao's dog to her face.

Xiao Yu, a fresh graduate new to the workplace, had no idea how to handle such situations. Not wanting to worry Su Xingyao, she could only cry silently by herself.

After hearing this, Su Xingyao handed Xiao Yu a tissue.

"I'm sorry, I dragged you into this."

Xiao Yu shook her head quickly, "No, that's not what I meant."

Su Xingyao's apology only made Xiao Yu want to cry more.

It was clearly the bully's fault; Su Xingyao had done nothing wrong.

Seeing Xiao Yu tear up again, Su Xingyao wiped her tears.

"This won't happen again."

Hearing Su Xingyao's words, Xiao Yu instantly felt less wronged.

She nodded seriously, pulled herself together, and followed Su Xingyao to the set.

At first, she thought Jiang Zihang would have some restraint and only target her, a lowly assistant.

But the moment she arrived, she overheard one of Jiang Zihang's assistants talking to him mockingly.

"Hey bro, you know what? My little brother's school is having a sports day this year, and they added a swimming event."

As he spoke, he shot a glance at Su Xingyao and laughed on purpose. "This year, their school heartthrob also participated. Because of him, a lot of people came to watch. That's normal, the spotlight is always on the heartthrob. But then something funny happened. Some guy, acting all girly, passed out in the shallow end during warm-ups before the race even began."

"Everyone was so shocked when he fainted that they all turned to look at him instead of the heartthrob."

"Everyone thought he had some serious illness and was about to die, but then..." The assistant sneered, "He claimed he caught a fever from the cold water and had to stay in bed for a whole week!"

Jiang Zihang also laughed, "Oh, a whole week? What a tough guy."

After their little performance, the assistant deliberately glanced at Su Xingyao again and said, "I mean, if this guy's so weak, why's he even in a swimming competition? He should just go home and drink some herbal tea to toughen up. Doing stuff like this is really embarrassing."

He spoke just loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.

Everyone nearby couldn't help but glance at Su Xingyao after hearing this.

Anyone with half a brain could see they were deliberately mocking Su Xingyao.

Xiao Yu heard it too.

After hearing this, her hands trembled with anger.

These two jerks just wouldn't quit!!

She'd always heard from her seniors that the entertainment industry could be brutal, especially for unpopular actors—they often got bullied.

Especially on sets, where bullying was rampant...

She thought this kind of thing would never touch her, but she never expected it to happen right beside her.

Just because Su Xingyao wasn't popular, had a bad rep, and few fans, just because his company didn't care and he had no strong backing...

That's why Jiang Zihang and his crew felt free to bully him so openly, not even pretending to keep up appearances.

The more they acted like this, the angrier she got on Su Xingyao's behalf.

"Speak of the devil..."

Seeing Xiao Yu's reddened eyes, Jiang Zihang smirked at her deliberately, "What Cao Cao? Just taking the dog for a walk."

Jiang Zihang's look of 'what are you gonna do about it?' drove Xiao Yu almost mad. Her mind was a blank slate, and all she wanted was to immediately go at it with these two jerks.

"What are you saying!"

She unbuttoned her sleeve and rolled it up.

Jiang Zihang's assistant also laughed, "My brother said walking the dog, what are you reading into it?"

Xiao Yu had reached her breaking point.

Just as she was thinking of quitting her job just to go all out against them, someone's hand covered her eyes.

In front of her was darkness, but Su Xingyao's voice came through clearly to her ears.

"I've got you, it's okay."

His voice wasn't loud, but it had a reassuring firmness.

Xiao Yu's raging heart was instantly calmed. Realizing she couldn't cause more trouble for Su Xingyao due to her impulsiveness, she reluctantly swallowed her anger and went to Su Xingyao's designated area to wait for him to finish filming.

After Xiao Yu left, Su Xingyao didn't look at Jiang Zihang or his assistant. He adjusted his costume and sat in the wheelchair prepared by the crew.

He was about to film a scene with Jiang Zihang.

This was one of the few scenes they had together in the drama.

The scene was set right after the Immortal Liuli had taken over Duan Huaiyu's body.

At this time, Su Xingyao's character, Duan Huaijin, had finally shaken off the humiliating title of 'princess' that the old emperor had given him, after his brother from the same mother succeeded in the throne.

Similarly, with his brother's backing, he became known among the people as the cold-faced Luo Sha, the Prince of He.

Everyone in the world knew that this Prince of He was far from gentle.

He was violent, eccentric, and his greatest hobby was ending lives with a whip.

Su Xingyao was about to film the scene where he punished Duan Huaiyu with a whip.

Years ago, when Duan Huaiyu forced him to search for a jade pendant in the freezing lake during the dead of winter, his legs were left severely frostbitten after spending the night submerged in the icy pond.

However, Duan Huaiyu thought he hadn't tormented him enough and twisted the story when he told their father.

The old emperor, in a bad mood, punished Duan Huaijin by forcing him to kneel in the snow for an entire day and night.

His legs, already injured, were not treated, and kneeling in the snow all night was the final blow.

Thus, after this kneeling, Duan Huaijin only survived thanks to his brother's intervention.

But the muscles in his legs were permanently frostbitten and necrotic, rendering his legs useless.

From then on, Duan Huaijin nursed a deep-seated grudge and opposed Duan Huaiyu at every opportunity.

And today, on a snowy day.

He forced Duan Huaiyu to wear nothing but a thin garment and, using the same reason, punished him to kneel in front of his palace.

Once the lighting was set, the director called for action.

As the clapperboard snapped, Su Xingyao lowered his gaze and began fiddling with a small jade qilin in his hand.

The extras escorted Jiang Zihang before him, forcing him to kneel down.

"Your Highness, we've brought the person."

Su Xingyao acted as if he hadn't heard, only lowering his head to focus on the small jade qilin in his hand.

The camera immediately cut to a close-up.

Su Xingyao's face filled the monitor.

In the frame, after remaining silent for a while, the corner of his mouth twitched into a faint smile.

After lazily raising his eyelids, he slowly raised his head.

Su Xingyao wasn't wearing any villainous makeup.

On the contrary, his attire was strikingly simple, a white robe that billowed like an immortal's, elegant and noble.

But despite his striking beauty, there was nothing ethereal about his expression. His captivating, sharp eyes radiated an inscrutable cunning, creating a striking contrast, like a venomous beauty.

A few seconds later, he finally condescended to look directly at Jiang Zihang.

But the way he looked at him was as if he were looking at a piece of trash.

He raised an eyebrow slightly, drawling as he smiled and asked, "Ninth Brother, did you find the jade pendant?"

Jiang Zihang, standing two or three meters away from Su Xingyao, had no choice but to meet Su Xingyao's gaze.

But for some reason, even though he knew it was just acting, when Su Xingyao's eyes swept over him, he couldn't help but shudder with unease.

He had never felt such intense pressure while acting before.

Even though he knew it was due to the character's setup, he still felt waves of nervousness.

Stay calm, stay composed.

Don't let Su Xingyao outshine you.

Jiang Zihang, who had been intensively studying acting techniques recently, tried hard to suppress his discomfort, recalling his role as the Immortal of Liuli, and finally raised his head proudly to meet Su Xingyao's gaze.

"Prince He, there is no jade pendant here."

It would have been better if he hadn't looked up. As soon as he did, Jiang Zihang saw Su Xingyao, who had just leisurely sipped his tea, smiling faintly as he slowly wheeled his chair closer to him.

Two meters...

One meter...

Fifty centimeters...

As the distance between them grew shorter, Jiang Zihang felt an overwhelming urge to flee.

Especially when he saw Su Xingyao, following the script, slowly pick up the whip, his heart tightened even more.

He knew very well that Su Xingyao wouldn't dare to actually whip him, and he probably didn't have the strength to do so.

But his instincts told him he had to call for a cut now.

Jiang Zihang had already forgotten his next lines and actions.

He could only gape at Su Xingyao, his facial expressions slipping...

Just as he regained his composure and was about to call for a stop, he met a pair of eyes as cold as a winter stream.

With a sharp "crack!"

a sharp, decisive whip crack echoed across the set.

The whip sliced through the air with a powerful whoosh.

After a moment of stunned silence,

Jiang Zihang's agonized scream tore through the set.