Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Su Tinghe was clueless in the bar, while Shang Huoyong in the villa was on the verge of going mad.

He always suspected that Su Tinghe was fickle, pretending to be obedient in front of him every day, but one day would surely cheat on him.

Drunken Island Bar, huh? What a place to mess around, spending his money, hiring male companions, openly flirting with him, and who knows how many people he's been hanging out with behind his back.

Shang Huoyong had already pictured Su Tinghe flitting between different men. The mere thought made Shang Huoyong's blood boil. He grabbed a coat and sped off to Drunken Island Bar.

Under the ambiguous and hazy lights, the pulsating music pounded against his eardrums. Shang Huoyong pushed through the crowd and saw Su Tinghe playing rock-paper-scissors with a group of handsome young men.

Su Tinghe extended his fist, and Shang Huoyong covered it with his hand, glaring at Su Tinghe, saying, "You're coming home with me."

Shang Huoyong's sudden appearance took Su Tinghe by surprise, and he didn't recognize him immediately. He instinctively pulled his hand back. Seeing this, the person next to him grabbed Shang Huoyong and demanded, "Who the hell are you?"

Shang Huoyong let go of Su Tinghe, narrowed his phoenix eyes, and with a cold glare, he grabbed the man's collar and said darkly, "I'm his husband. Who the hell are you?"

The man chuckled, patted Shang Huoyong's hand, signaling him to relax, "Oh, so you're the husband. Let's keep it civil, no need to be so aggressive."

Suddenly seeing Shang Huoyong's gloomy face, Su Tinghe felt a bit scared. His delicate hand reached up to Shang Huoyong's arm, and he said softly, "Let's talk this out, no need to fight."

Shang Huoyong glanced at Su Tinghe, released the man's collar, and instead grabbed Su Tinghe's hand, his tone much softer, "You're coming home with me."

Su Tinghe didn't resist. He never really liked such places and obediently followed Shang Huoyong out.

After a few steps, Bai Hua grabbed Su Tinghe and said to Shang Huoyong, "Mr. Shang, the bill hasn't been settled yet."

Bai Hua gestured to the group of people and the pile of drinks on the table, "All this needs to be covered."

Shang Huoyong paid reluctantly and dragged Su Tinghe out. Bai Hua called out loudly from behind, "Su Tinghe, there was this really hot, buff guy who asked me who you were. Can I share your contact details with him?"

At this, Su Tinghe turned around, wanting to ask what was going on, but Shang Huoyong tightened his grip on Su Tinghe's hand, dragging him stumbling along.

Back in the car, Su Tinghe was thrown into the seat, and Shang Huoyong demanded, "Do you even realize you're married? Not coming home at night, running off to such places, hanging out with a bunch of guys, what kind of behavior is that?"

Su Tinghe rubbed his sore hand and said angrily, "Have you ever heard of a married couple sleeping in separate beds?" Thinking of last night, Su Tinghe's eyes reddened, and he choked out, "And I wasn't doing anything wrong, just playing rock-paper-scissors and drinking milk."

Seeing the redness around Su Tinghe's eyes, Shang Huoyong's anger instantly melted away. He explained, "There's a good reason for that."

Su Tinghe looked up at Shang Huoyong, waiting for him to continue. Shang Huoyong racked his brains and had a flash of inspiration, "Actually, before we got married, I went to see a fortune teller. The master told me to abstain from sex and said that for the first two years of marriage, we shouldn't have intimate relations, or else there would be disaster. At best, bankruptcy; at worst, death."

He wasn't wrong; wasn't that how miserable he was in his previous life? Shang Huoyong observed Su Tinghe's reaction, wanting to see what he would say.

Su Tinghe was stunned, thought for a while, and then said, "Is this fortune teller you found legit?"

Shang Huoyong: "Quite reliable."

Su Tinghe said with a strange and guilty expression, "But doesn't that mean I'm a jinx?"

Su Tinghe couldn't help but feel a wave of panic. Could this so-called master have already calculated that he was from another world, and his arrival would have a negative impact on this world?

"No," Shang Huoyong quickly denied, "The master just told me to be careful recently. After these two dangerous years, everything will be fine."

Su Tinghe was half-convinced, "Where is this fortune teller you found? Can I meet him?"

Shang Huoyong immediately said, "The master has gone on a journey recently, and his return date is uncertain."

Seeing that Su Tinghe still didn't believe him, Shang Huoyong continued, "I have no reason to lie about this. If you don't believe me, we can break the rule tonight and see."

As he spoke, Shang Huoyong made a move to lean in, but Su Tinghe pushed him away forcefully, grumbling, "No, I really don't want to become a widow."

Shang Huoyong raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile played on his lips.

After Shang Huoyong came up with this excuse, whether Su Tinghe bought it or not, at least Su Tinghe no longer provoked Shang Huoyong in the following days.

Su Tinghe was busy selecting actors, costumes, and props for the TV series he had invested in, and with so much on his plate, he barely had time to spare a thought for Shang Huoyong.

The day before, Su Tinghe had just told Bai Hua that he was a perfect fit for the role of the young prince in the TV series, and the next day, he recommended Bai Hua to Zhang Shijing. Unexpectedly, the investor wanted to fast-track someone so quickly. Zhang Shijing was momentarily worried, but after seeing Bai Hua in person and giving him a once-over, he had to admit that Bai Hua was indeed a good fit.

In Zhang Shijing's words, Bai Hua looked like a delicate white flower on the surface, but in reality, he was a black sesame-filled tangyuan (a sweet dumpling with a dark filling). If Su Tinghe was a soft, white glutinous rice ball, then Bai Hua was a tangyuan with a dark filling.

As for the role of the regent, after some back-and-forth, the model who had auditioned initially was still the most suitable.

The only issue was that the two new actors they had chosen came cheap, but fortunately, they were quick learners and willing to improve. More importantly, their salaries were nowhere near the inflated numbers online, which was crucial for their small-budget production.

When signing the contract, Su Tinghe was surprised to find that the actors' salaries couldn’t even cover Bai Hua’s adoptive father’s treatment, so Su Tinghe proposed increasing the lead actors' salaries.

Both Zhang Shijing and Bai Hua immediately shut Su Tinghe down, with Bai Hua reluctantly accepting Su Tinghe's offer. He suggested that Su Tinghe simply give him the money directly as a loan, instead of jumping through hoops and getting taxed to death.

The preparations for the production were progressing smoothly. However, when it came time to take the costume photos, Su Tinghe scowled at the actors' getups, running his fingers over the coarse fabric and questioning Zhang Shijing, "How is this supposed to resemble royal attire?"

In his previous world, Su Tinghe's family, the Su family, had supplied textiles and silk to the imperial palace. Influenced by his family background, Su Tinghe could tell the quality of fabrics at a glance.

Zhang Shijing explained to Su Tinghe, "We’re on a shoestring budget here. We need to spend money wisely. The costumes are good enough, and with the right lighting, no one will bat an eye."

Su Tinghe instantly understood and said with great seriousness, "So what you’re saying is, we need more cash. You should have said so earlier. I can chip in more, but the costumes absolutely cannot be subpar."

Zhang Shijing thought to himself, "I didn’t say that," but on the surface, he rubbed his hands together and smiled, "That's great. If there’s anything else bugging you, just fix it."

Su Tinghe remembered the hanfu blogger he’d run into at the cultural fair and tried contacting the hanfu manufacturer recommended by the blogger.

The hanfu manufacturer was founded by several original designers who loved hanfu and were dedicated to promoting it. This was their first crack at designing for a production, and while they didn't dare to make grand promises, they would do their best.

Since Bai Hua was gearing up to join the production, he resigned from his jobs at Jiusong Academy, the café, and the bar. Before leaving, Bai Hua handed Su Tinghe over to his teacher, who was the vice president of the Calligraphers Association. Bai Hua had seen Su Tinghe's calligraphy and knew that Su Tinghe's skills were way better than they let on. He encouraged Su Tinghe to keep improving.

Su Tinghe thought to himself that his skills weren’t limited to calligraphy but also included traditional Chinese painting. However, he played it cool, unsure if the original owner had these skills, so he didn't mention it.

Bai Hua's teacher nodded repeatedly upon seeing Su Tinghe's calligraphy and encouraged him to consider participating in competitions and exhibitions.

Su Tinghe smiled and said he would try, quietly amused by how much of a cheerleader the teacher and his disciple were.

When Shang Yizhi returned to Jiusong Academy to study calligraphy and found that the calligraphy teacher had changed, he also learned that Bai Hua's father had already raised the funds for his treatment. Shang Yizhi felt as if his world had collapsed.

Especially when he discovered that all of this was thanks to Su Tinghe, his expression twisted repeatedly.

All his carefully planned schemes of rescuing the beauty and having her offer herself in gratitude had been ruined by Su Tinghe. Shang Yizhi was so angry that he decided not to return to Jiusong Academy and instead focused on opposing Shang Huoyong at the company.

Su Tinghe didn't think much of it, only feeling that with Shang Yizhi gone, the risk of his secret being exposed had decreased. However, he still dutifully attended his pinyin classes on weekends.

When Ruan Xitian saw Su Tinghe again, she wore a pained expression, "It's my brother's fault. After hearing you had a husband, he backed off on his own."

Su Tinghe was speechless, "Where did you learn to say such things? There was never any possibility between me and your brother."

Ruan Xitian replied innocently, "That's how it always happens in TV dramas. The second male lead often takes the lead."

Su Tinghe: "..."

For the first time, Su Tinghe understood why Shang Huoyong had advised him to watch fewer brainless dramas. He earnestly educated Ruan Xitian, "You should watch fewer of these dramas. You're still young, and too much of this will rot your brain."

Ruan Xitian seemed to half-understand: "But my mom loves watching it, and I watch it with her."

Su Tinghe: "Your mom is an adult, so it's fine for her, but you're a child, so it's not okay."

"Oh," Ruan Xitian responded, though it was unclear whether she really got it.

After school, Su Tinghe saw Ruan Xiting again at the entrance of Jiusong Academy. Ruan Xiting took Ruan Xitian by the hand and asked Su Tinghe, "Are we friends?"

Su Tinghe nodded, "Yes, we are."

Ruan Xiting smiled and took out his phone, "Since we're friends, let's swap contact info."

Su Tinghe also smiled and they added each other as friends. Ruan Xiting then invited, "Hey, you free tomorrow night? We have a performance at the bar we went to last time, and we're debuting a new song. You gotta come to support us."

Another bar visit? Su Tinghe was conflicted. He had been going to bars too frequently lately, and each time he ended up being taken home by Shang Huoyong, which was quite embarrassing. Su Tinghe told Ruan Xiting, "My husband might not be cool with me hitting up bars."

Ruan Xiting was almost jumping with anger, "You're not his possession, why does he control you like this? Who does he think he is?" After calming down a bit, Ruan Xiting suggested, "Why not just bring him along?"

Is that so? Su Tinghe hadn't thought of that option and only told Ruan Xiting he would ask about it.

Ruan Xiting was frustrated and helpless, saying sadly as they parted, "You gotta come, the band really misses you."

Su Tinghe replied, "I'll do my best."

As Su Tinghe pondered how to bring this up with Shang Huoyong, Shang Huoyong, who had recently discovered that the lead actor of "Yu Lin Ling" was the same as in his past life, became more and more suspicious that Su Tinghe might have been reborn too. However, after several attempts to probe, Su Tinghe appeared to know nothing about his past life.

Ever since his rebirth, Shang Huoyong sensed that something had shifted, but he was always on the edge of discovering the truth, just a hair's breadth away from it.

As Shang Huoyong was lost in thought, Assistant Song came in to get some documents signed. After signing, Assistant Song joked, "Boss Shang, Young Master Su could totally be a beauty blogger. He hasn't even posted anything yet, but he's already got tens of thousands of followers."

Shang Huoyong looked puzzled, "What?"

Clearly clueless about what was going on, Assistant Song opened an app to show Shang Huoyong, "Remember the video I forwarded to you last time? It was posted by a Hanfu blogger. This afternoon, she posted a set of polished photos of Young Master Su in ancient costumes from the video and tagged an account, which should be Young Master Su's. It already has tens of thousands of followers."

Shang Huoyong scrolled through the photos of Su Tinghe in ancient costumes and had to admit, they were stunning. The post's data was excellent, which was no surprise, but some comments questioned whether the photos were heavily photoshopped, wondering what he really looked like.

Shang Huoyong frowned, wanting to reply, but since he was using Assistant Song's phone, he refrained.

After Assistant Song left, Shang Huoyong took out his own phone, registered an account, and went to the original post's comment section to reply: [Only someone who's into heavy photoshopping would think others do it too. If you don't need your eyes, you can donate them to someone else.]

The other side quickly replied: [So quick to defend, another brainless fan who only cares about looks. Go back to school and study.]

Shang Huoyong, who had never been spoken to like this, passionately engaged in a heated exchange with the other party, with others joining in the fray.

Amidst the arguing, someone in the comments said, "Quick, go to the young master's account, he's live streaming."

Shang Huoyong paused the argument and followed other netizens to Su Tinghe's account.

In the video, Su Tinghe was wearing a smooth, flowing mist-blue pajama with a deep V-neck, revealing a triangular area below his neck, making him look incredibly lazy and alluring.

Su Tinghe leaned his face close to the phone screen, his brow furrowed, seemingly puzzled: "Why are there so many scrolling words here? Is it hot? Should I unbutton my clothes? I'm not hot. Why hasn't it grown out yet? What hasn't grown out?"

Shang Huoyong cracked his knuckles audibly.