Chapter 23: Thoughts

Chapter 23: Thoughts

The urge to kiss his beloved was like Pandora’s box, luring Yu Lanzhao into the abyss.

—"Ah Zhao."

A familiar voice suddenly broke through, clear as a mountain stream’s chime, dispelling the haze and snapping him back to reality.

Yu Lanzhao’s mind cleared instantly.

He was mere inches from Lin Shenshi’s lips and stammered in fluster, "W-what is it?"

In his line of sight, Lin Shenshi seemed completely unaware of his intention. Instead, his eyes lit up: "Ah Zhao, why don’t we run away?"

"...Run away?"

"Yes. Let’s leave this place and go somewhere Lu Yuan can never find us. What do you think?"

After long deliberation, Lin Shenshi figured that since the original novel’s protagonist had tried every conventional method without success, why not forge a new path? If normal solutions failed, perhaps an unconventional one would work.

What the original protagonist couldn’t achieve—Lin Shenshi could.

The character in the book was penniless; his only hope after graduating from the Performing Arts Academy was to become an actor, leaving him trapped at every turn, unable to leave freely.

But Lin Shenshi was different.

The story had adopted his real-world identity. He still had over 100,000 yuan in his bank account, and his parents earned well. Even if he and Yu Lanzhao fled right now, dropped out of college, and never entered the entertainment industry, they wouldn’t have to worry about money.

A simple, quiet life ahead didn’t sound so bad! It was better than living under constant threat of death or being pinned to bed 24/7 and fucked until immobile!

The more Lin Shenshi thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. Faced with what was essentially a proposal to elope, a flicker of longing passed through Yu Lanzhao’s dark eyes—but ultimately, his lips trembled, and the young man lowered his head. "Sorry, Xiao Shi, I can’t."

Lin Shenshi asked, puzzled, "Why not?"

Yu Lanzhao bit his lip, hiding a stubborn resolve beneath his long lashes.

His life couldn’t be decided so hastily.

Most importantly…

Yu Lanzhao’s gaze settled on Lin Shenshi.

Xiao Shi shone brilliantly, and no matter what, he felt unworthy right now. He could only focus on becoming someone worthy of him in the future. But if they ran away, he’d never get that chance.

The young man’s thoughts were hidden, difficult for Lin Shenshi to read. As they spoke, another reason dawned on Lin Shenshi.

Yu Lanzhao had lost his parents young, growing up alone in an orphanage. With nothing, he worked hard and never gave up. He was a lotus rising through the mud, refusing to sink or rot—which was why, later in the novel, he gathered strength and swept all three Golden Triple Best Actor awards in one go.

Though running away might solve their immediate problem, it would clip the wings of this young man destined to soar. He’d never walk the path toward a brilliant future.

Lin Shenshi realized a moment later that he’d been thinking too simply. As a transmigrator, he might not care, but Yu Lanzhao wasn’t. Everything in the novel was his real life.

He couldn’t ruin Yu Lanzhao’s bright and shining future.

They’d have to find another way.

*

Class One WeChat Group (Excluding Lin Shenshi & Yu Lanzhao)

Classmate A: [Breaking News!]

Classmate A: [Following the “Two Guys Fighting Over One Guy in the School Corridor” and “Love Triangle with Three Guys in Acting Class” incidents, the “Dorm Fight” incident has just erupted!]

Then came several blurry long-distance photos. In them, Lu Yuan wore a dark expression, a faint scrape visible on his nose bridge. His usually neat casual suit jacket was rolled at the sleeves, revealing strong, defined forearms. Wrinkles in his clothes bore damp stains.

Classmate B: [OMG! I’ve never seen Teacher Lu look so rough. What exactly happened? Requesting a report from the scene reporter!]

Classmate A: [Reporter on the scene reporting! Around 10 p.m. tonight, a loud commotion shook the dorm building. At first, everyone thought someone’s Samsung phone had exploded while charging—but! After checking floor by floor, everyone discovered the truth was even more explosive than a phone blowing up!]

[The lock on Room 303 was completely broken off, and the bathroom was flooded. Lin Shenshi came out to answer inquiries, calm as ever, saying Teacher Lu was just helping fix a broken pipe—but since when does fixing a pipe require breaking down a door?!]

[Moreover, according to eyewitnesses, it was actually Yu Lanzhao who broke the door, meaning Lin Shenshi and Teacher Lu were alone together in the room at the time!]

Classmate B: [Guys, my cheater radar is going off!]

Classmate C: [Hahaha! Mine too! What kind of wild plot is this—wife caught with the repairman by the husband at the door?!]

Classmate D: [Want detailed descriptions of what happened inside the room.][Emoji: winking smirk]

Classmate E: [Want detailed descriptions of what happened inside the room.][Emoji: winking smirk]

Classmate F: [Want detailed descriptions of what happened inside the room.][Emoji: winking smirk]

Classmate G: [Want detailed descriptions of what happened inside the room.][Emoji: winking smirk]

Repetitive messages collapsed *N...

Classmate A: [Exact details unknown, but based on careful observation, Yu Lanzhao looked furious. Though Lin Shenshi wore long sleeves and pants, red marks were still visible. Most importantly—]

Classmate A paused for several seconds, building suspense, before typing amid eager demands:

[Lin Shenshi’s lips were swollen!]

[Though Lin Shenshi claimed it was a canker sore from overheating, what kind of eyes do I have?! Eyes sharpened by reading tens of thousands of steamy R-rated BL novels!]

[It absolutely, one hundred percent, without a doubt—was swollen from kissing!]

[So the question is: Who kissed his lips swollen?]

After heated debate, some said Lu Yuan, others said Yu Lanzhao. Votes were nearly split when a comment suddenly appeared:

[Guys, why choose? Adults want both!]

Now we have the older teacher-student dynamic and the younger puppy-love dynamic—how perfect!

As soon as this was posted, it gained instant widespread support. But imagination is beautiful; reality is harsh. The photo of Lu Yuan leaving injured clearly showed the aftermath followed the rule: "Two tigers cannot share one mountain."

Otherwise, the circulated photo the next morning would’ve shown all three walking side by side, smiling.

For a while, the group filled with endless whining—but no worries. If there’s no content, we’ll create our own!

Within ten minutes, a sketch was posted.

It depicted a bathroom scene. Simple lines illustrated water splashed everywhere. A young man was pressed between two figures—one tall, one short. Water streamed from the showerhead, soaking his thick hair, trickling down his smooth profile.

His chin was gripped, his lips bitten and rubbed raw, crimson marks blooming where lips and teeth met, mingling with water dripping down his jaw and vanishing into the collar of his shirt.

His hands were pinned behind his back, while another figure wrapped an arm around his waist, sliding a hand beneath his half-open shirt, caressing his skin through the soaked fabric.

Instantly, the group flooded once more with drooling [Hnnngh hnnngh] sounds.

[Feast!] [Thank you, OP!] [The food is so delicious!] [Gimme more!] [Master, are you resting? Even a workhorse wouldn’t rest this much!] [Online waiting for updates!]

Amid the chorus of demands for updates, a second picture was posted in the group just a few minutes later.

With the same composition as the first one, it was a clothes-free, uncensored version, and all the clear water on the youth’s body was replaced with thick, rank-smelling fluid.

Those amber eyes were tightly shut, the corners damp and red-tinged.

The group erupted once again.

[How great it is to live in modern times! We get to witness divine miracles without making sacrifices!]

[Master, you deserve to be honored in the Imperial Ancestral Temple!]

[Please accept my kneel of respect!]

Meanwhile, the people involved in the incident had no idea that they had become the entire class’s BL shipping material, and were heading further down the path of raunchy/explicit stuff.

At this moment, Lin Shenshi had just finished cleaning up the messy dorm room with Yu Lanzhao and was lying in bed, replaying things in his mind.

It was only then that he realized the wound on Lu Yuan’s right hand had long since healed.

That hand, capable of single-handedly pinning all his movements, showed no trace of injury whatsoever!

Lin Shenshi cursed under his breath, “Damn!” All this time over the past two weeks, he had been worried about Lu Yuan’s injury. Despite his fear, he had steeled himself to go to the office and help write replies, and what did he get in return?

This?

Liar!

A big fat liar!

Was he really such a pushover?!

The more Lin Shenshi thought about it, the angrier he became, swearing to himself: from now on, if anyone lied to him again, he would never forgive them!

And besides…

It dawned on Lin Shenshi belatedly—could it be that Lu Yuan had taken a liking to him during this time?

As a straight guy, he couldn’t understand guys’ dating preferences, but according to Lin Shenshi’s own standards, who wouldn’t like a gentle and caring girl?

Was it his bandaging and attentive care that made Lu Yuan misunderstand?

Seriously, he only wanted Lu Yuan to stay away from Yu Lanzhao—he didn’t need to sacrifice himself for that.

What a shocking plot twist!

Originally, he had promised Lu Yuan to make up all the overdue fan letters on Sunday, but now that they had fallen out, there was no need to go.

But Lin Shenshi couldn’t shake his unease. He spent the whole Sunday holed up in the dorm, staring at his phone, jumping at every rustle or creak outside the door.

However, the entire day passed, and aside from the repairman fixing the door, no one else came.

No criminals broke in to kidnap him, no lunatics showed up with knives to kill.

Could it be that his threat had worked?

But deep down, Lin Shenshi knew that given the ruthlessness described in the original book, Lu Yuan would definitely make a comeback.

It was just… in what form would it be…

After several days of anxiety, Lin Shenshi had to face Lu Yuan again.

Standing outside the lecture hall for acting class, Yu Lanzhao grabbed his hand with desperate determination: “Xiao Shi, let’s skip this class.”

Lin Shenshi was stunned. Yu Lanzhao was known throughout the academy as a model student, never late or leaving early. In the original book, even after being worked over by the male leads the night before, he never once said he wouldn’t attend an 8 a.m. class.

Yu Lanzhao tightened his grip: “Lu Yuan isn’t the only one teaching acting. We can apply to change teachers.”

“Ah Zhao…” Lin Shenshi knew this was a solution, but—

“The course selection system closed long ago. If we want to change classes, we need the counselor’s signature, but…”

The counselor for Class One, Acting, was Lu Yuan himself. He would definitely not sign for them.

A catch-22.

Yu Lanzhao bit his lip: “If not the counselor, I’ll go to the dean, the principal, and if it comes to it, I’ll take it to the education bureau.”

Lin Shenshi: “…”

If taking it to the education bureau worked, you wouldn’t have been miserably pinned down in bed for so many years in the original book.

Lin Shenshi patted his hand, about to say something, when a teacher approached.

“Why aren’t you going into the classroom?”

“Right away.”

Lin Shenshi pulled Yu Lanzhao into the lecture hall. After sitting down near the door, he noticed the unfamiliar teacher also entered and walked up to the podium.

The teacher explained: “Teacher Lu is away at a seminar and won’t be back for two weeks. I will be substituting during this period.”

Lin Shenshi and Yu Lanzhao exchanged a glance, both seeing hope and relief in each other’s eyes. During the break, Lin Shenshi brought the course transfer form to the teacher. The new teacher, surnamed Li, was actually the instructor for another acting course in the academy.

“Teacher Li, we really like your teaching style and would like to transfer to your class.”

Lin Shenshi respectfully handed the application form to him. Teacher Li looked up from his course materials, glanced at the form, and then turned to them: “Sorry, but no. You’ll need your counselor’s signature.”

“But Teacher Lu isn’t here, and two weeks is too long. Could you sign for us?”

“Other teachers might be able to, but Teacher Lu…” Teacher Li hesitated, then smiled and pushed the form back. “I’m sorry, I can’t help you.”

Yu Lanzhao didn’t want to give up and tried to persuade him, but was still politely refused.

The class bell rang, forcing them to return to their seats for the time being, planning to try again after class with more pleading.

At the same time the class ended, Yu Lanzhao’s phone rang.

Caller ID: Director Tang Sen

Yu Lanzhao frowned and hung up without hesitation, but the caller persisted and dialed again.

The back-and-forth caught Lin Shenshi’s attention: “Who is it?”

“A stranger.” Yu Lanzhao hadn’t forgotten the diversion tactic from Saturday night. Although he didn’t know exactly what relationship Director Tang Sen and Lu Yuan had, Tang Sen was definitely involved in that night’s events.

Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence—right after Tang Sen’s audition call, Lu Yuan sneaked into the room where Lin Shenshi was drunk and sleeping alone. Yu Lanzhao kept hanging up, but the calls kept coming. Finally exasperated, he answered with a frown: “Stop calling me. I won’t go to the audition.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line, followed by a soft voice saying, "Yu, no audition is needed. The sixth male lead in 'Long Moon Star River' is yours. You can come and sign the contract anytime."

Yu Lanzhao: "?"

Miles away, in a towering skyscraper, director Tang Sen was equally bewildered. As he made the call, he nervously shifted his gaze toward an imposing figure standing not far away.

Before the expansive floor-to-ceiling window stood a man in a tailored high-end suit, holding a glass of red wine with his back turned. A low ponytail rested gracefully along the sharp lines of his shoulders. His demeanor was calm and effortless, yet it radiated an air of meticulous calculation and unwavering confidence.

It was as if the entire world lay within the palm of his hand.