Chapter 38

Chapter 38

Ning Zeshu's words made it clear he still hadn't given up on sowing discord and stirring up trouble.

But since it was He Shixia being put in a difficult position, Ning Yichu simply watched with detached amusement.

Catching Ning Yichu's gaze, He Shixia smiled at him and replied quite calmly, "I was negligent and failed in my responsibilities before, so it's only right that A Ning rejects and dislikes me now. It's truly karma."

Then his gaze shifted, turning cold as he looked at the troublemaker Ning Zeshu. "But what goes on between A Ning and me is none of your business, Young Master Ning. Instead of concerning yourself with us, you'd be better off thinking about what kind of karma your Ning family's actions will bring."

Ning Zeshu shrugged. "Xiao Chu, why is He Sixth Young Master starting to promote feudal superstitions now?"

Ning Yichu focused on his own meal, paying no attention to either of them.

The live stream audience grew even more curious—

"Brother He and sister-in-law seem to have a lot of history…"

"A Ning, be generous when you should! Hurry up and share with us!"

"It seems He Shixia's cooking really won over Ning Yichu; he's eating quite attentively."

"Look on the bright side, Brother He—you've already captured sister-in-law's stomach. That's the first step to success!"

"But it's quite surprising. It was unexpected enough that Film Emperor He can cook, but who knew he'd be so good at it?"

Not only were the viewers surprised, but even He Shixia's own mother was astonished.

He Weian hadn't originally planned to watch the live stream of He Shixia and Ning Yichu's show, but she couldn't overlook just how big a splash it made from day one. The Ning family had even come rushing over personally, hoping she would join them in stopping Ning Yichu from continuing his "grand performance" on the program.

After seeing off the couple Ning Shaoren and Han Wenhua and finishing dinner, He Weian decided to check out the live stream. She happened to catch He Shixia carrying dishes from the kitchen outdoors.

At first, she thought He Shixia was just helping to serve, but a closer look told her otherwise—that meal was something He Shixia had made himself, from start to finish!

Feeling as if she'd discovered a new world, He Weian looked at her husband Tang Qingshan in puzzlement as he watched the program with her.

"The private kitchen they mentioned—is that the one under your name?" He Weian asked. "When did Shixia learn to cook?"

Tang Qingshan also wore a baffled expression. "I haven't heard about this. Why would Shixia learn to cook… Should I ask the people at the private kitchen?"

He Weian shook her head. "Since even you don't know, either Shixia told them not to say anything, or it wasn't convenient for him to say where he learned it. When Xiao Chu asked, he just took the opportunity to admit it. In either case, there's no need to ask. But Shixia… Have we communicated too little with him? If he liked Xiao Chu before, why did he never mention it?"

Tang Qingshan fell silent for a moment before speaking softly. "Could it be… because we always expressed hope for him to get engaged to Ning Zeshu? He refused the Ning family's proper young master. If he then said he liked Xiao Chu, the adopted son whom the Ning family dislikes, he might have worried it would make things worse for Xiao Chu—especially if we disapproved. So perhaps Shixia never spoke of it before…"

"Shixia isn't one to shrink back like that." He Weian dismissed Tang Qingshan's speculation, pondering instead. "It seems more like he himself hadn't figured it out clearly before… Well, let them do as they please. We can't control them anyway."

As she spoke, He Weian tapped the screen where Ning Zeshu was, looking thoughtful. "But this young master of the Ning family—his behavior on the show is completely different from when we've met him before. I can't help but notice. In more stable times, it wasn't as apparent, but now… There must be something wrong with the Ning family's upbringing. They either produce fools or madmen."

Speaking of fools, Tang Qingshan thought of Ning Shaoren and Han Wenhua, who had just left. "Why do the Ning family think stopping this program will stop Xiao Chu? Didn't his unrestrained behavior at the banquet serve as a warning to them?"

He Weian had rejected Ning Shaoren's "cooperation" invitation for two reasons. First, she found it ridiculous to go to such great lengths and require collaboration between two families just to halt a single program.

Second, judging by Ning Yichu's previous behavior—never satisfied until he caused the biggest stir, never giving up until he achieved his goal—this live stream program was merely a convenient platform handed to him. With this platform, Ning Yichu used it; without it, could he not go online or speak out?

If anything, provoking him further would likely make him raise even more hell.

He Weian saw things clearly and had no intention of joining the Ning family in their foolishness.

"Ning Shaoren and the others still see this adopted son as a child they can bully at will," He Weian remarked, watching the live stream. "A child raised under such torment either grows up meek and indecisive or ends up like Xiao Chu—once he seizes an opportunity, no one can make him swallow his grievances again."

Tang Qingshan also pondered. "I don't quite understand either why the Ning family found it necessary to treat a child that way. But judging from their past public statements, they were well aware such bullying couldn't see the light, so they only promoted that narrative about the impostor prince and the ungrateful wolf to the outside world."

He Weian shook her head. "No wonder Kangning is on the decline, especially in recent years. Elder Ning's personal conduct is… questionable, but when he was in charge of Kangning before, he managed it quite well. Ever since his eldest son Ning Shaoren took over the family business, it's been going downhill year by year. It may still look glamorous on the surface, but if they were truly that secure, the Ning family wouldn't have been so keen on arranging marriages with other families these past few years."

Then He Weian remembered something. "But today, I finally realized one thing—so He Rulin had offended Xiao Chu like that before. No wonder Xiao Chu insisted on making a big scene earlier, forcing He Dingbang and the others to leave the He family."

Seeing how vindictive Ning Yichu could be, He Weian was even less inclined to help the Ning family.

Tang Qingshan hesitated, speaking with some guilt. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble. If not for protecting me, you wouldn't have to waste time dealing with people like Ning Shaoren, whom you don't even respect."

"And Shixia… To be honest, seeing now that Shixia married someone he truly likes—whatever the circumstances—he clearly adores Xiao Chu. I feel quite relieved. At least we didn't truly ruin Shixia's life. Thankfully, he insisted on not compromising with the Ning family regarding the engagement before…"

He Weian frowned. "Why bring this up again? Since you married into our He family, you are one of us. As long as you haven't betrayed the He family, of course I'll protect you."

Tang Qingshan still felt apologetic. "Today, Ning Shaoren and Han Wenhua kept hinting at my past incident in their conversation…"

He Weian let out a cold laugh. "How dare they even think of that. That's why I say they're utterly foolish. Threatening someone with the same thing once is enough. Last time, I already agreed to use Shixia's marriage as an exchange—they couldn't seize the opportunity themselves. Now they want to try a second time? Do they really think I, He Weian, am that easy to push around? They don't even understand basic social etiquette; it's only thanks to their ancestors' legacy that they've lasted this long. Don't worry—at this point, they wouldn't dare publicize your incident either, or they'd implicate themselves."

Tang Qingshan sighed softly. "I've troubled you."

…

In the program's live stream—

After dinner, today's recording concluded, and the guests could return to their accommodations. The director thoughtfully had staff distribute five flashlights, reminding the guests to watch their steps on the way back.

Since their lodgings were in different directions, the ten guests soon split up.

He Shixia and Ning Yichu walked side by side, accompanied only by the filming crew and the deep night of the desolate wilderness.

Ning Yichu suddenly remarked, "If no one came to this island to record a show, it'd be a great place to hide a corpse."

The topic came so abruptly that He Shixia was momentarily speechless. Then he tentatively tried to decipher Ning Yichu's meaning. "A Ning, have you grown so tired of me that even when we're alone, you're thinking of ways to kill me without leaving traces?"

Ning Yichu raised an eyebrow. "Good idea. I'll buy a small island later and take you there for a visit."

He Shixia couldn't help but laugh. "Then it's settled—we'll go somewhere undisturbed to relax. Don't go back on your word."

"High EQ: Let's go relax somewhere undisturbed together."

"Low EQ: I'll take you to a deserted island and bury you there."

"Hahahaha are this couple really discussing murder and corpse disposal in this pitch-black environment?"

"A Ning can afford to buy an island? Rich Ning!"

"Probably just talk. They're both joking anyway. The Ning family wouldn't give Ning Yichu that much money. Ning Yichu just graduated this year—it hasn't even been a few months. He couldn't have saved enough from work to buy an island."

"It's fine. Brother He's family doesn't mistreat him, and he's worked for years. He has money. Sister-in-law can ask Brother He for money to buy an island, hehe."

"A deserted island, just the two of you… you can do whatever you want, hehe."

"You can keep up such a nonsensical conversation and still claim you're not a couple?"

"By the way, earlier today I saw people discussing that He Shixia is probably from the He family of the He Group. I looked it up… Has no one noticed before?! A few days ago, He Group announced a major equity change. Although key details were redacted, it's confirmed that a certain He, who originally held 8% of shares, transferred all shares to their spouse, a certain Ning… That matches up!"

"Wait, seriously?"

"Then A Ning really does have money to buy an island, hehe."

"Holy crap, eight percent of He Group's shares... just hearing that number sounds massive..."

"I just wanna dip my hands into Presidents Ning and He's wallets to warm up."

"Now nobody can claim He Shixia's affection is an act, right? Who would use that many shares of their own company as a gift just for show? Anyone can do a quick finance search to get a rough idea of He Group's market cap."

"Too bad he still didn't get a warm reception from his wife, hahaha."

"Goes to show money really can't buy love..."

"But at least he's got a legitimate claim now! Take a page from He Shixia's book—stay positive!"

Even with flashlights, walking at night was still tricky. By the time the two slowly made it back to the red-brick house, it was almost ten o'clock.

Ning Yichu was already starting to nod off—probably because the day had been so eventful and draining. Anyway, all he wanted now was to grab his clothes, take a shower, and go to bed as soon as possible.

He Shixia first covered the cameras in the bedroom—as for the audience's wails and pleas to stay, that wasn't his concern.

The house wasn't large, but as a tourist rental, it had its conveniences, like the bathroom being inside the bedroom for easy access. With the cameras blocked, the live-stream audience wouldn't get to see either of them for the rest of the night.

"Since we can't see them anymore, I'm going to start making up rumors based on the time and place."

"Right, I can ignore Film Emperor He's pallet and pretend he doesn't have to sleep on the floor."

"Why does it feel like my ears don't work when my eyes are blocked?"

"Glasses-wearers get that, but right now it's probably because they really aren't talking."

"Ning Yichu was just about to grab clothes to shower, right? So He Shixia must be worried his wife might faint in the shower and has already followed him into the bathroom. Yeah!"

"Good, I'm into this brand of rumor!"

However, the reality might catch the audience members who were "making up rumors" by surprise—because He Shixia really did follow him into the bathroom.

Of course, he assured him it wasn't to act like a creep.

Ning Yichu had just walked into the bathroom with his pajamas, looking around for where to put his change of clothes, so he hadn't closed the door yet. But then he heard a soft click of the door closing. Turning around, sure enough, it was He Shixia.

Ning Yichu frowned. "Why did you follow me in?"

He Shixia almost raised both hands to show his innocence. "It's inconvenient to talk outside. Even though the camera is covered, the audio recording is still running, so I had to come in to talk to you. Half a serious matter?"

Then, without pausing, he got straight to the point. "Ning Zeshu's behavior today was too strange. Whether it's his sudden appearance on the show or his words and actions, they're completely different from what you and I remember from this time in our past lives. So I was thinking... A Ning, is it possible... he's also reborn?"

Ning Yichu blinked.

"I know it sounds far-fetched, but given how bizarre Ning Zeshu's actions are, my suspicion isn't totally unreasonable, right?" He Shixia slowed his speech, thoughtful. "If he's also reborn, I'm worried it might affect your original plans."

The protagonist from the original story, who had a smooth-sailing life and lived to a ripe old age, reborn? Ning Yichu chuckled.

He replied, "My thinking is the opposite of yours. If both of us can be reborn, it wouldn't be strange if another reborn person suddenly appeared now. But I don't think Ning Zeshu is reborn."

He Shixia paused slightly, then nodded. "Can you tell me more about why you think that?"

Ning Yichu hugged his clothes and leaned against the sink—whether to fit the "red-brick house" theme or simply because they hadn't gotten around to tiling, even the bathroom walls were rough brick. Only the sink was ceramic, so leaning against it wasn't uncomfortable.

Then he said leisurely to He Shixia, "You and I died at different times in our past lives, but our rebirth points in this life are the same. Logically, if anyone else is reborn, their time node should match ours too. A reborn person wouldn't make no changes at all, and before this, only the two of us were different from our past lives."

"Especially Ning Zeshu. If he were really reborn, he wouldn't have done nothing during this time, and he certainly wouldn't have watched me stir things up without showing himself."

Though Ning Yichu hadn't figured out Ning Zeshu's motives yet, he didn't think Ning Zeshu's personality had changed from their past life. "As for Ning Zeshu's personality, that's just how he is in private. He's only changed his usual act in front of others now, not undergone a personality overhaul."

After being reborn, Ning Yichu sought revenge, relying heavily on the "foresight" from his extra lifetime of memories. So when He Shixia considered that Ning Zeshu might also be reborn, he worried it could disrupt Ning Yichu's plans—hence bringing up this speculation. Of course, any topic was fine as long as he could talk more with Ning Yichu.

He Shixia had been quite happy that Ning Yichu was willing to explain in detail earlier, but the more he listened, the less happy he became.

He feigned jealousy, half-serious. "A Ning, you seem to know Ning Zeshu very well."

Ning Yichu lifted the corner of his mouth. "If you were forced to compare with someone for over a decade, you'd know them well too."

He Shixia snapped back to reality, not daring to indulge in any jealousy, real or fake. "Sorry, I spoke out of turn... By the way, A Ning, can I ask how you realized I was reborn right from the start?"

Ning Yichu returned the same reasoning. "If you were wrongly accused of indifference, you'd also notice right away when that enthusiastic person seemed off."

He Shixia lowered his head, flustered. "Sor—"

"'Sorry, my apologies, it's my fault, I shouldn't have treated you that way in my past life...'" Ning Yichu cut him off, mimicking a rambling tone, then said disdainfully, "My ears are about to grow calluses from hearing it. If you really have nothing else to say, maybe switch to another language next time. At least give me some novelty."

He Shixia had no choice but to swallow back his repetitive, uninspired words and hurriedly said, "I'll be more careful with my words from now on... A Ning, I'll step out now. You can shower."

Ning Yichu tilted his head, teasing on purpose. "Not showering together, hubby?"

He Shixia nearly tripped over nothing from being called that, his retreating figure practically a fleeing escape. Only then did Ning Yichu find it amusing and let out a laugh.

After showering, Ning Yichu realized there was no hair dryer in the bathroom. He walked out with damp hair and asked He Shixia to help look for one.

But after searching both the bedroom and outside, they came up empty-handed.

He Shixia grabbed a dry towel and cautiously asked, "Want me to help dry it?"

Ning Yichu had been sleepy even before showering, and now he just wanted to collapse into bed. Too lazy to move, he nodded.

He sat on the edge of the bed while He Shixia stood, gently drying his hair with the towel.

Ning Yichu dozed off for a bit before realizing, "With this pressure, are you planning to let my hair air-dry naturally?"

He Shixia paused, also feeling rather foolish. He smiled apologetically and increased the vigor of his towel-rubbing.

"Even though I can't see the current scene, it's fine—I can imagine it myself."

"These few lines could be edited into something steamy, hehe."

"Late-night topics are just different—glancing over, not a single healthy one in sight."

"Their conditions are actually pretty good—just no hair dryer. You know, over at Alien's place, they don't even have curtains, hahaha!"

"Don't want to check their live stream, but curious how they manage without curtains. Someone fill me in!"

"They turned off all the indoor lights. Luckily, it's also dark wilderness outside with no lights, and the trees above block a lot of moonlight. Then they cover any awkwardly angled cameras inside, and only dare enter the bathroom after making sure it's safe by live-streaming with their phones, haha."

"The thatched cottage and beach villa are also troublesome—missing doors or walls. Even though they're live-streaming and not afraid of intruders, it's still an unfamiliar place, so they're being cautious. Zhang Kejiu and Cui Yun take turns guarding the bathroom door for each other, and Ren Shi and Qin Muyun do the same."

"Speaking of which, watching today, I think Ren Shi and Qin Muyun seem quite harmonious and in sync, not at all like they're about to divorce..."

"So many people would be heartbroken if this national couple divorced, sigh."

"They probably joined the show specifically to let concerned fans see they're divorcing amicably, to avoid rumors later. Being able to part on good terms makes it less awkward for those who care about them."

"Over at Ning Zeshu's place, the haunted house vibe is too strong. Even with lights on, it's about the same as Alien's place with lights off—the live stream automatically switched to night vision mode, hahaha!"

"He had the gall to bring up the haunted house incident from childhood with Ning Yichu today. Now that he's stuck in that environment himself, I wonder if he can finally understand a fraction of what it felt like."

[What empathy? There's a huge difference between an adult's and a child's coping ability, between going in by choice, mentally prepared and free to leave, and being forced into confinement. Besides, they just say it's *like* a haunted house—it doesn't actually have scary sound effects or staff coming to 'play' with you...]

Although the live stream in Ning Yichu and He Shixia's room was pitch black with hardly any sound, the audience was still enthusiastically discussing in the live chat.

Finally, the audience heard sounds again—it was He Shixia telling Ning Yichu that his hair was dry and he could go to sleep.

Ning Yichu drowsily nodded, then lay down, pulled the blanket over himself, and closed his eyes.

He looked so tired that he probably wouldn't even bother if someone tried to steal a kiss, which amused He Shixia.

Of course, He Shixia didn't dare try to steal a kiss.

He kept his movements quiet, grabbed his pajamas, and went to the bathroom to wash up. Before closing the door, he turned off the main bedroom light to keep the bright light from disturbing Ning Yichu's sleep.

After finishing up in the bathroom and drying his hair, He Shixia came out, still moving quietly around the foot of the bed to his floor mattress and lay down.

Just thinking that Ning Yichu was lying right beside him—though at a slightly different height, they were indeed sharing the same space—warmed He Shixia's heart. He fell asleep wearing an unconscious smile.

Until the middle of the night, when He Shixia was abruptly awakened by the sound of stifled coughing. He sat up suddenly and looked toward the bed.

Ning Yichu had curled into a ball, coughing and wheezing, completely non-responsive.

He Shixia quickly got up, turned on the light, and hurried back to the bedside. He didn't even need to check his temperature by touch—Ning Yichu's usually pale face was alarmingly flushed, clearly indicating a fever.

He Shixia grabbed his phone and called the director, informing him that Ning Yichu had a fever and was sick, asking the program's medical team to come right away.

While explaining the situation to the director and listening to Ning Yichu's painful coughing, He Shixia felt both heartache and anger.

The heartache was for Ning Yichu; the anger was at himself.

He Shixia was furious at his own carelessness and failure to take good care of Ning Yichu, causing him to fall ill on the very first day of the show. This hadn't happened in their previous life, and now, in this second chance, he was doing even worse.

...

At Xiazhi Entertainment in City A, the public relations department was working overtime due to the demands of the top boss, Ning Anxia. They were dedicated to crafting a perfect plan to ruin Ning Yichu's reputation as quickly as possible.

Someone was assigned to monitor Ning Yichu's movements on the show at all times, even while he slept. So, before many people even realized what was happening, Xiazhi Entertainment's PR department had already informed Ning Anxia about Ning Yichu falling ill.

Because it was an urgent task, Ning Anxia, half-asleep, suppressed her temper to answer the call. After hearing the news, she was wide awake.

She urged, "Strike while he's weak. Hurry up and release all those smear pieces before dawn. Take advantage of Ning Yichu being too sick to defend himself, and make a big scene. Once he's sick, he'll sleep for at least a day. By the time he wakes up, public opinion will already be set. No matter how smooth-talking he is, he won't be able to escape unscathed."

The PR manager who received this order hesitated, "Ms. Ning, is it really necessary to rush like this..."

Ning Anxia was displeased, "What, are you sympathizing with Ning Yichu now?"

The PR manager immediately denied it, "No, no, no. As your employee, I'm definitely on your side. I'm just worried that rushing might lead to mistakes. For example, we haven't had time to contact many of our marketing accounts yet. If we try to push it by dawn, it'll be even harder to coordinate. If the marketing account matrix isn't synchronized, I'm afraid it'll affect the results..."

Ning Anxia sneered, "You work in PR, and I have to explain this to you? Timing is everything! Do as I say!"

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Author's note: I promise to return to my normal update schedule tomorrow, no more delays. *bows head*