AHFAFTGTTT Chapter 21
by VolareChapter 21: Cousin? What? Hater? Flirt a Little.
“What are you guys doing?”
Xu Chengyue propped himself up on the bed with his elbow, only then noticing the needle and IV tube on the back of his hand.
The clothes he was wearing were even more oversized, completely enveloping him. The scent was fresh and pleasant. He stared at the pattern on the cuff, his eyes flashing – a Van Cleef & Arpels hidden pattern jacquard shirt.
He had once caught a glimpse of it in a magazine, with this series starting at least in the six figures. At the time, he thought what a fool would buy such impractical clothes, never expecting that fool to be right beside him.
The little girl kneeling on the keyboard moved forward two steps on her knees, leaning pitifully beside his bed. “We’re repenting.”
“Chengyue-gege, I’m sorry. I’ve cursed you so many times. I was your hater…” She raised three fingers to her forehead, swearing, “But now I’ve seen Ye Xiao’s true face and am reforming myself!”
Xu Chengyue’s mind was a little muddled. “Excuse me… do we know each other?”
“My name is Xie Wanwan, the ‘wan’ from ‘night’… the ‘wan’ from ‘night moon’! Chengyue-gege, you don’t have to forgive me, but I’ll silently protect you from now on.” Xie Wanwan felt like the protagonist in a “wife chasing cremation” drama, now as helpless as a heartless man.
Xu Chengyue couldn’t help but chuckle, the red mole between his eyebrows shining brightly. “It’s okay, get up quickly.”
He looked at the little girl crying with snot and tears and got up to help her. Just as his wrist bone slipped three inches of white from the inky shirt, it was intercepted mid-air by Fu Yang’s palm, which had a burn scar, and pressed back into the blanket.
“Don’t move around.” Fu Yang frowned, stacking the fluffy pillows to prop him up behind his back. The glucose drip on the IV stand swayed, casting fragmented spots of light on Xu Chengyue’s pale face.
Only then did this draw Xu Chengyue’s attention. The young man only inches away had gloomy san bai yan eyes, his eyelids drooping, not willing, but more like being forced by someone.
“Why are you kneeling?”
“I… seeing her kneeling, I felt bad, so I’m keeping her company.” Fu Yang gritted his teeth as he said.
Actually, Xu Chengyue had been unconscious for a day and a night. After Xie Wanwan divined like a sorceress, she said it was because he had cursed innocent people and his sins were heavy. He had to place the weapon of attack – the “keyboard” – under his knees and chant scriptures nine hundred and ninety-nine times for the patient to recover.
Fu Yang certainly didn’t believe it, but the problem was, he had just finished reciting the nine hundred and ninety-ninth time…
Xu Chengyue woke up.
Damn it, this cursed metaphysics.
Could it be that his sins were really heavy and his character was bad? The materialist Fu Yang was about to be driven crazy by this metaphysical world. He couldn’t possibly cry with snot and tears to beg for the “protagonist’s” forgiveness, could he?
“I’m sorry.” Fu Yang didn’t often say these words, wanting to gloss over this topic slightly vaguely, “Although I already said it that night.”
“What did you say that night?” Xu Chengyue tilted his head slightly, his eyes filled with some confusion.
“You forgot? That night…” Fu Yang’s Adam’s apple bobbed heavily, his voice abruptly cut off in the air.
Recalling that night when he softened his heart and helped someone relieve the effects of the drug, he was so embarrassed that he wanted to jump off the building. And even though it was both of their embarrassment, now it seemed like only he remembered?!
“What happened that night?” Xu Chengyue’s fingertip traced the extremely delicate embroidery on the quilt cover. “After drinking, I blacked out. I only remember you rushing into Ye Xiao’s house with a chainsaw.”
The light from the crystal lamp fell on the tips of his slightly upturned eyelashes, condensing into a small, shimmering galaxy. “Like a savior walking out of a heroic comic.”
That scene of violence and aesthetics was now also exceptionally clearly imprinted in Xu Chengyue’s mind.
“After that…” His gaze swept across the Baroque chandelier hanging with crystal tassels. Thirty-three candle-shaped LED lights cast fragmented spots of light on the Persian carpet. The velvet sofa was luxurious and noble.
“Why did you bring me here?”
He clearly remembered that Shangguan’s home wasn’t wealthy either. It seemed he was an orphan. Galaxy Entertainment’s scout had discovered him at the orphanage.
“This is my cousin’s home. It’s close by. We were being chased by paparazzi last night, and you wouldn’t let me take you to the hospital, so we had to come here.”
But Xie Wanwan was dressed exquisitely, looking like a rich young lady at first glance.
Xu Chengyue didn’t expect Shangguan to have such a wealthy cousin.
Were they friends from the orphanage? His friend was adopted by a wealthy family, while he struggled in the entertainment industry, leading them down completely different paths.
“Then thank you, Wanwan.”
Xu Chengyue’s voice was clear and smooth, like an early spring stream gliding past his ear. His handsome face glowed with a jade-like luster, his eyebrows relaxed, and a gentle and healing smile hung on the corner of his lips.
He was showcasing the professional qualities of a professional idol in every way.
What? Hater? Flirt a little.
Xie Wanwan’s face flushed red.
The fan circle was a terrifying thing. She used to think Ye Xiao was even more handsome than Xu Chengyue. She was truly blind.
“Chengyue-gege, the chef made chicken porridge. Have some before you rest more.” Xie Wanwan pointed to the hot porridge on the nearby cabinet.
Xu Chengyue nodded, thanking her again. Xie Wanwan happily ran out to get water for her new idol.
Because Xu Chengyue was still receiving the IV drip, Fu Yang naturally held the porridge and wanted to feed him.
The ceramic spoon was held to his lips, but Xu Chengyue suddenly thought of Ye Xiao’s words and turned his head slightly away.
Suddenly learning that two teammates liked him, Xu Chengyue couldn’t help but reflect on whether he also had a problem, such as not maintaining enough distance with same-sex friends, causing them to mistakenly think he was giving them some kind of signal.
So Xu Chengyue extended his intact left hand, unintentionally avoiding skin contact, and pursed his lips slightly. “I can drink it myself.”
Was he avoiding a plague?
Xu Chengyue’s seemingly careful actions were clear to Fu Yang.
He narrowed his eyes, suppressing the discomfort in his heart.
Just the day before yesterday, someone was clinging to him, practically a sticky doll. Now that he was feeling better, he dared to start disliking him.
“I heard everything about you and Ye Xiao. Before your phone broke, I recorded everything you said.” Fu Yang handed him his phone. “See how you want to retaliate for a bigger impact.”
The recording included Zhao Qian’s relationship of supporting Ye Xiao, the truth about Xu Chengyue’s assault incident a year ago, and Ye Xiao admitting to drugging Xu Chengyue.
Just the recording might not be able to completely destroy him, especially since Ye Xiao had Zhao Qian to protect him, but exposure would at least bring about a devastating blow to Ye Xiao’s career.
Xu Chengyue lowered his eyes slightly, not immediately answering his question.
“What are you hesitating about? He treated you like this.”
Sometimes Fu Yang really didn’t know what Xu Chengyue was thinking. The things he did with that pretty face of his were always irritating.
“Shangguan, thank you for arriving in time to pick me up.” Xu Chengyue suddenly changed the subject, revealing a gentle smile. “I haven’t properly thanked you yet.”
“It’s nothing.” Fu Yang shrugged. “I told you, Ye Xiao had bad intentions. Who told you not to listen to me? If I had arrived any later…”
“I would have smashed a vase over the back of his head.” Xu Chengyue’s eyes gradually turned cold, but he quickly smiled again. “Thank you for preventing me from committing a crime.”
Fu Yang was speechless. He thought this guy was just a helpless, weak Cinderella and almost forgot about his ferocity during special training.
“Why did you help him a year ago?”
After hearing the whole story, Fu Yang felt that Ye Xiao deserved what happened a year ago. Xu Chengyue had clearly explained the pros and cons to Ye Xiao, but that guy still jumped into Zhao Qian’s trap. It was fortunate that Xu Chengyue had a good temper. If it were him, he would have an aversion to idiocy toward Ye Xiao.
It was one thing to be stupid himself, but he even turned around and tried to guilt trip Xu Chengyue, saying that Zhao Qian wanted Xu Chengyue the most, and he went in his place.
A common manipulation tactic to start shifting blame.
But it was indeed very effective. The guy in front of him seemed to want to let him go because of that bit of guilt.
“Even if it wasn’t Ye Xiao but someone else, I would have helped.” Xu Chengyue affirmed.
“And then let Zhao Qian seize your weakness, plunging you into a storm of public opinion? You could have told the truth back then.”
“And tear his wound open again in front of everyone? If he wanted to, I could have helped him identify that he was forced into a dirty deal by Zhao Qian, but he didn’t want to, so I respected his idea and remained silent.”
“And then stand on the front line to shield him from gossip? You’re really quite the hero.”
Fu Yang kicked the keyboard under his feet. With a “bang,” it shattered into pieces, keyboard keys flying everywhere. He didn’t know why he was getting angry again, perhaps because he was also one of those deceived by the truth and the gossip. In short, three parts shame, four parts doubt, and five parts anger at his lack of ambition. This person was either really hypocritical or in the late stages of Saint’s Disease.
“Ye Xiao wasn’t like this before.” Xu Chengyue recalled seriously, “Cheerful, optimistic, and doing his best for his dreams.”
“People always change. Even if there was a time when he simply strived for his dreams, it’s also true that he was eventually blinded by the glamour of the entertainment industry and gradually fell into depravity. Xu Chengyue, can you stop clinging to your memories and look ahead, okay?”
Fu Yang put his hands on his hips, saying somewhat irritably.
Clinging to memories…
Xu Chengyue trembled all over, like a critically ill patient who had been pointed out the root of his illness with a single needle.
He quickly turned his head away, not wanting to show his vulnerable side in front of his teammate. He pressed his fingers against his eyebrows, masking his vaguely collapsing expression, forcing back tears, and after a while, he calmly analyzed again as the leader:
“We’re filming a group variety show soon. Leaking the recording at this time would only cause a major blow to Spark. We finally won Heartbeat Label, and everything is developing in a good direction. Shangguan, even if I don’t care about Ye Xiao, I can’t not care about the other members. A group shares both glory and loss.”
“One last time.”
Xu Chengyue decided to give Ye Xiao one last chance. If he hurt others again to climb up, he would no longer be soft-hearted.
Fu Yang was just an outsider and couldn’t understand their feelings.
But Spark had indeed been together for five years.
As the leader, Xu Chengyue couldn’t let Ye Xiao, that rat turd, ruin the entire pot of Spark’s porridge.
Finally, Fu Yang nodded, not deleting the recording file as Xu Chengyue said, but dragging it into an encrypted file.
Just then, Li An called.
“Shangguan Yaoguang? Where did you go?”
“What’s the matter?” he replied.
“Do you know where Chengyue went? I can’t get through to his phone; I can’t contact him at all.”
“He’s next to me. Just tell me.”
Xu Chengyue said from the side, “An-jie.”
The tone on the other end of the phone was slightly urgent—
“Where did you two run off to? Get back to the group dorm quickly; the group variety show is about to start filming.”
“So fast?” The two exchanged a glance.
“I’ll tell you the details when you get back. Oh, right, the director of this variety show is Zhao Qian.”