Chapter 70

Chapter 70

With the help of Qi Ze, the entertainment company CEO and ultimate behind-the-scenes source of inside information, Song Nian finally heard from Li Yanchuan the story of Qin Xiao and Jin Chengzhou.

It turned out that the Qin and Jin families had been friends for generations, and the two had known each other since they were kids. Later, one entered the entertainment industry as an actor, while the other joined the military as a special forces soldier.

The two seemed to grow apart, but after Jin Chengzhou was injured and discharged from the military to start a security company, their paths crossed again.

Qin Xiao's management team had hired Jin Chengzhou's company to provide personal protection. But after one event, unexpectedly, sasaeng fans followed and caused a car crash, nearly injuring Qin Xiao.

Whether it was to make amends or not, Jin Chengzhou personally took on the role from then on, serving as Qin Xiao's personal bodyguard and also as his life assistant.

"Probably taking Qin Xiao's career into account, the two haven't made it public—only close friends and family in the industry know about it," Li Yanchuan recalled.

"Did Jin Chengzhou's company make a mistake during that security operation?"

Hearing this, Song Nian latched onto the key point.

"There shouldn't have been any fault. His security company is very professional. It was the sasaeng fans who got out of control and caused the incident."

So why did Jin Chengzhou, the boss, have to personally act as a bodyguard?

On the surface, it seemed like he was making up for a mistake, but coupled with them growing up together and the way Jin Chengzhou looked at Qin Xiao, Song Nian felt it wasn't that simple.

Could it be love that grew over time?

But if so, why did it take them so many years to get together?

After quietly gossiping for a bit, Song Nian suddenly realized something else:

"Hey, honey, how do you know so much industry gossip?"

Not just this incident—every time they talked, Li Yanchuan seemed to share plenty of gossip, making Song Nian listen with great interest.

A CEO of a big corporation wouldn't normally be exposed to such things, would he?

Hearing the question, Li Yanchuan's eyes flickered for a moment before quickly regaining his composure, pretending to be nonchalant:

"I heard a few things when chatting with Qi Ze before."

Far away, Qi Ze, who had been up all night compiling hundreds of pages of PDFs for someone, suddenly let out a loud sneeze.

"You got work today?"

After chatting a bit more, Li Yanchuan asked.

"I finished filming the morning scenes, just removed my makeup and I'm resting. Now I'm in the lounge waiting for lunch."

Sitting cross-legged on a chair, Song Nian swayed his head, the little topknot he'd tied up while taking off his makeup bouncing back and forth.

Thanks to the generous funds from a certain Mr. Li, the investor, and the treatment he got as the second male lead, he had a private lounge on the set.

Shooting this script was harder than the last one, and the director's demands were stricter. The high-intensity filming took him a while to get used to; every day he had to be fully focused, afraid poor performance and too many retakes would hold up the schedule.

Whenever work was over, Song Nian liked to relax in the lounge for a while, chatting with Li Yanchuan to de-stress.

And coincidentally, every time he called during a break, Li Yanchuan always answered promptly, whether at work or busy with something else.

As they chatted, the life assistant gently knocked and brought in lunch.

Expecting Song Nian to happily hang up and eat, Li Yanchuan was surprised that the usually food-loving Song Nian sat back down with a sigh, holding his lunch box.

"What's wrong?" he couldn't help but ask.

Instead of answering, Song Nian simply opened the lunch box to show him.

Inside was a green diet meal—bland and tasteless.

Leafy greens, bell peppers, boiled chicken breast—every unappetizing thing was there.

No wonder Song Nian, who loved spicy food, was so dejected.

He hadn't cut corners on the crew's budget, so why was lunch like this?

"Director Zhao said I need to lose another five pounds to better fit the character."

With tears in his eyes, Song Nian lowered his head and angrily chewed a large mouthful of greens.

"You're already this thin and still need to diet?"

Hearing this, Li Yanchuan frowned in displeasure.

He thought Song Nian was already skinny enough—barely any flesh on him except in a few places, and he felt bony to hold. Losing more would make him look skeletal.

"To fit the character's role, right? But don't worry, when we film the second half, I have to gain it back."

After all, the character in the early part of the story was poor and thin; later, when conditions improved, he could return to his original physique.

Munching on a cucumber, Song Nian asked Li Yanchuan what he was having for lunch.

Originally about to hang up and not disturb the little star eating his rabbit food, Li Yanchuan instead kept the video on and walked over to the dining table.

He even set up a stand so the camera could show all the dishes on the table.

Looking at the fragrant meal cooked by Aunt Wang—even though it was still light-flavored and he couldn't smell it through the video call—it was enough to make Song Nian drool.

He couldn't help swallowing, and started to satisfy his craving by giving orders from afar:

"Eat this, take more meat."

"Have more of that too, those shrimp look so fresh."

"Don't just eat the veggies—have some soup too."

His tone was so matter-of-fact that anyone listening would think he was remote-controlling Li Yanchuan to pick food for him.

This "feasting his eyes" act was so amusing that even though Song Nian was chattering away like a little chatterbox, Li Yanchuan didn't find it annoying at all—on the contrary, he found it incredibly cute.

With a smile in his eyes, he obediently ate his lunch one bite at a time, following his instructions.

After the meal, they still didn't hang up. As they were chatting, there was a gentle knock on the lounge door, and Qin Xiao poked his head in.

"Little Song Nian, want to go over our scenes for this afternoon?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe.

How could I say no to a senior's invitation? Song Nian answered, then turned to Li Yanchuan and said:

"Alright, I'm gonna hang up now. I'll call you tonight."

He paused, then grinned and added:

"I'll miss you, but don't miss me too much, okay?"

"Mm, good luck at work."

Catching the smile in his eyes, Li Yanchuan replied in kind.

"I'll miss you too."

When the video call ended, Qin Xiao raised an eyebrow and teased him:

"On the phone with Chairman Li, huh? You two are really close."

Song Nian gave a sheepish smile.

"Hey, I have to say, I'm quite envious of you two."

As he sat down on the sofa, Qin Xiao leaned his head back against the couch, his smile suddenly disappeared.

Maybe it was my imagination? Melancholy and sorrow seemed to surface on his face, as if he had sunk into distant memories.

He hadn't meant to spy, but he happened to witness their intimate moment.

So direct, so open in expressing their feelings—if he and Jin Chengzhou had been as honest back then, would they have wasted so many years apart?

Envious of us?

Hearing this, Song Nian was a little confused, but he didn't want to ask out of the blue. He just blinked and waited for him to continue.

But Qin Xiao didn't explain further. He smiled and shook his head, immediately switching back to his usual bright grin, pulling out the script:

"Enough talking! Let's run lines."

Actually, I'm envious of you too.

I envy how you get each other and lean on each other. Peeking at him from behind the script, Song Nian muttered under his breath.

——

Fortunately, the dieting scenes didn't take too long to film, and Song Nian finally reached the day he could eat whatever he wanted.

No more eating just veggies!

No more ordering takeout like a secret agent!

Just as he was rubbing his hands together, eagerly waiting for lunch, he was shocked to see that today's lunch was different.

Because today, instead of handing out boxed lunches at mealtime, a catering truck from a restaurant pulled onto the set.

The chef unloaded all kinds of gear from the truck and started wok-frying on the spot. They'd even take custom orders—whatever you wanted, they'd whip it up.

A whole table of buffet-style dishes made everyone's mouth water, a world apart from the previous boxed lunches. The crew was baffled, wondering if the director had lost his mind or suddenly had a change of heart.

Director Zhao cheerfully announced that the investor had specially prepared this feast for everyone after their hard work.

And the investor happened to pick the day right after the diet ended.

No doubt about it, this was arranged by Li Yanchuan.

He prepared such a big surprise and didn't say a word.

Song Nian hummed to himself, so happy that an imaginary tail behind him was wagging furiously.

Unlike the other colleagues who were still in the dark, Qin Xiao stepped forward, draped his arm over Song Nian's shoulder, and whispered with a smirk:

"It's your guy, isn't it?"

Caught off guard, Song Nian rubbed his nose awkwardly and didn't answer.

"Let me tell you, President Qi never gave me this kind of treatment. Your Chairman Li is really good to you."

Grinning, Qin Xiao grabbed his personal bodyguard and happily went to eat.

Blushing at the tease, Song Nian chatted and ate with everyone, then slipped away to a corner when no one was looking and called Li Yanchuan.

As soon as the call connected, a confident low chuckle came from the other end:

"Do you like it?"

The voice was so charming it made Song Nian's ears tingle. He pretended to complain:

"Why didn't you tell me?"

But there was no anger in his reproach, only the sweetness of being valued—it sounded more like being spoiled.

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise."

After all, the young star had been counting down the days for a big meal for a week now.

"If you like it, I can have them come every day and cater for the whole crew."

"No way, don't waste money like that."

Song Nian mumbled as he chewed, shooting it down.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Qin Xiao and Jin Chengzhou standing face to face. The former, on tiptoe, tried to shove leftover fruit into the latter's mouth, while the latter, with a look of pure indulgence, bent down slightly to eat from his hand.

So close, so clingy.

For no reason, Song Nian, standing alone, was suddenly overwhelmed with longing.

"You sent food, but when are you coming to visit me on set?"

The words came out casually, light and drawn out, as if unconsciously acting spoiled.

Lately, Song Nian had been busy filming and couldn't go home, and Li Yanchuan, with his leg still bothering him, hadn't seen him in over a month.

"Alright, I'll come be your assistant in a while."

Li Yanchuan chuckled softly.

Sunlight poured in from outside, hitting his sharp profile.

"If you don't come, I'll give you the silent treatment."

Just treating it as a joke, Song Nian curled his lips and played along.

The person on the other end let out a low chuckle, not arguing back.

After hanging up, Li Yanchuan rested his hands on the wheelchair armrests, tilting his head back to gaze out the window.

The next moment, sunlight, streaming in at a steady angle, slid from his cheek, down his chest, down past his waist.

Dappled light fell on his straight, taut thighs.

Then his tall, robust frame rose, casting a large shadow on the floor.

"Book me a ticket to the neighboring province the day after tomorrow."

Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, Li Yanchuan ordered his assistant in a low voice.