Chapter 16: Newcomer
When Su Jinli ran out, Shen Cheng and his team had already left; he didn't even catch sight of their car exhaust.
Shen Cheng, who's currently experiencing a surge in popularity, often moves as swiftly as the wind to avoid the paparazzi and his fanatic followers.
After a chat with Wu Yu, Shen Cheng immediately left quickly. He even brought a small team to protect him; only a few of the crew members actually saw Shen Cheng in person.
Feeling down, Wu Yu stayed a bit longer in the meeting room before leaving. By the time Su Jinli emerged, no one was in sight.
Returning to the training room feeling disappointed, Su Jinli saw An Zhihan squatting at the door. An Zhihan looked at him and asked, "What is it, are you a fan of Shen Cheng?"
Evidently, An Zhihan had seen Su Jinli rush out. Rather than chasing after him, he deliberately waited for him at the door.
"Not really... I just wanted to confirm something with him," he replied.
At the moment, he could not tell An Zhihan that he suspected Shen Cheng to be his brother. After all, he couldn't make such a claim without confirmation.
Additionally, the popularity of Shen Cheng was evident. Su Jinli understood some things and knew that this kind of behavior was akin to currying favor. It would be embarrassing if it's not.
"Give it up. He's quite aloof. I've seen him a few times, and never exchanged a word with him," An Zhihan shared his impression of Shen Cheng, which was not quite favorable.
"He should be quite gentle, right?"
An Zhihan scoffed after hearing this and laughed, "Gentle in front of the cameras. Behind the scenes, he's quite forceful."
Upon hearing An Zhihan saying this about Shen Cheng, Su Jinli felt a little uncomfortable and retorted, "It's because you don't understand him."
"Look at you, speaking like a true fan. Don't hide it anymore, little fanboy," An Zhihan teased.
Without saying anything more, Su Jinli took out his phone and searched for news about Shen Cheng.
After the search, he found a series of news articles and photos about Shen Cheng. Opening a photo to see Shen Cheng's handsome face and those smiling eyes, tears threatened to fall.
He had missed his brother for so many years.
At last, when he turned 18, he could go down the mountain to find his brother and excitedly set out with the provided address.
However, he lost the address after leaving. He idly roamed around Muzitao for half a year and even got scolded.
Now, wandering in the world alone, he doesn't understand many things, often causing awkward situations.
He especially wants to tell his brother how tiring it is to be an trainee, that he truly can't speak English, and how there are so many things he doesn't understand. He doesn't even dare to take showers anymore, feeling utterly fearful.
He had so many things he wanted to tell his brother. Seeing the good relationship between Ah Zhihan and An Zhiyan, he was really envious.
However...
He felt like such a fool...
Su Jinli squatted in the corridor, feeling dejected. He huddled up into a ball, tears falling silently down his face.
An Zhihan was taken aback for a moment. Seeing a cameraman coming this way, he quickly stepped in front and said, "No need to film this."
The cameraman wanted to insist but, failing to get past An Zhihan, ultimately gave up.
Recently, An Zhihan has been basking in the joy of being a big brother. Seeing Su Jinli like this, he couldn't help but comfort, "Don't cry, alright? So what if you didn't get to see him? In a couple of days, I'll get someone to fetch his autograph for you."
An Zhiyan would fly into a rage if he knew An Zhihan went to Shen Cheng for an autograph. An Zhihan might even get a beating, but right now, there's nothing to be done about it.
"Can you contact him directly?" Su Jinli asked tentatively.
"I'm the son of the CEO of Sejia Legend and a rival of Boruo Pineapple. Who can I reach out to him through? Even if I were to attempt, Shen Cheng would probably hang up directly."
An Zhihan's words were reasonable.
"Then I'll ask Wu Yu."
Su Jinli wiped his tears and returned to the practice room. He saw Wu Yu in front of the mirror, dancing to the theme song while singing the song he was about to compete with. He looked a bit out of place, but he was unexpectedly serious.
He was truly giving it his all.
Su Jinli felt a bit hesitant to interrupt, so he decided to ask Wu Yu later in the evening.
-----
"Shen Cheng?" Wu Yu asked after taking a bite of the ice cream that Su Jinli had treated him to, slightly furrowing his brows.
Su Jinli nodded seriously.
"Are you his little fan?" Wu Yu asked again.
It seemed like this reason was more convincing, so Su Jinli nodded again.
Leaning back on the resting bench, Wu Yu shook his head. "I'm not familiar with him at all. We're just from the same company. He came over today not to see me, but to complete a task and pay a courtesy visit. Afterwards, we'll probably still be strangers."
"Can you contact him? Giving me a way to contact him would be enough."
"You probably don't understand Shen Cheng very well. He has fewer than 20 friends on WeChat, and he doesn't add just anyone. Only those who have a close relationship with him can be added. If you try to contact Shen Cheng through his manager or assistant, you'll be directly refused, without any room for discussion."
After saying this, Wu Yu took out his phone from his pocket, thought for a moment, and made a call, attempting to get Shen Cheng's contact information from someone in the same company.
The answer he received was that Shen Cheng did not like to be disturbed, and probably only the higher-ups in the company knew his contact information.
Wu Yu put down his phone and saw Su Jinli's disappointed look, feeling a bit distressed.
He didn't know why either, but he had a particularly good impression of Su Jinli and wanted to get closer to him.
Perhaps he thought Su Jinli had a good personality?
Wu Yu finished the entire ice cream before gathering the courage to call his own father.
Once the call was connected, an indifferent voice belonging to his father answered.
Wu Yu had always disliked contacting his father. Every time he heard that tone of voice, he felt disheartened, especially now that his father wanted to put him in the position of being the heir of a wealthy family. It made him feel like he held no importance in his father's heart.
"I wanted to ask if you have Shen Cheng's contact information," said Wu Yu.
"So, you want to participate in a lowly talent show and now, you want to involve Shen Cheng in this and have him vote for you?"
"Do you... not want me to contact him?"
"Exactly."
"Oh." Wu Yu responded quickly, hanging up the phone. He turned to Su Jinli and said, "I'm sorry, I can't help," before falling into silence.
Shen Cheng wasn't sent by his father to persuade him, so why did he come and tell him these things?
What was going on?
Was Shen Cheng kindly informing him of his father's decision, or trying to cause discord?
Truly, an enigmatic person.
Su Jinli sat next to Wu Yu, also sinking into silence, in a state of despair.
Now he finally understood why his grandfather was so confident about his returning home soon.
His grandfather didn't want him to venture out, so he only gave him an address to find his brother on his own. Not knowing anything about the outside world, he was excited and left immediately.
It seems that his grandfather firmly believed that even if he knew his brother's address, he wouldn't be able to find him. Even if he got close to the family home, he would be stopped as just another fan.
His brother wouldn't know he had left the mountain and wouldn't be prepared. He wouldn't pay attention to the people around him.
This was truly frustrating.
How could he forget? His grandfather was quite the trickster!
That old fox!
What should he do in the future?
"Do you think... Once I become famous, will I have a chance to get close to him?" Su Jinli asked Wu Yu.
"Um, probably. You like him that much?"
"I just really want to meet him."
"Actually, meeting him might disappoint you. He's different in person compared to how he appears on camera."
This was the second person who had said this about Shen Cheng. Su Jinli turned his head to look at Wu Yu, a bit puzzled.
His brother was a very good person...
Wu Yu was also looking at him, seeing Su Jinli's eyes droop with disappointment. Wu Yu couldn't bear it and was thinking about what he should say to comfort him.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, An Zhihan walked over with his phone and took a picture of the two of them: "If I were to share this photo of you two gazing into each other's eyes, it would be a viral romantic moment."
Wu Yu's expression changed instantly upon seeing An Zhihan, a look of irritation on his face.
An Zhihan didn't mind, grinning as he stood facing them, asking, "The second round of the competition is coming up. Are you nervous?"
"Not really," Su Jinli answered.
"We definitely won't be eliminated in the second round," Wu Yu said confidently.
"Did you hear? Someone protested against the hidden cameras, exposing their privacy, and took their complaint to the production team. The production team didn't budge, so that person decided to withdraw from the competition, only asking the production team to delete the footage," An Zihan said, his gossipy nature flaring up as he discussed the matter.
"Hasn't this been an ongoing issue?" Su Jinli was aware of it, but he hadn't asked for details.
"The latest news is that a replacement trainee from Huasen Entertainment will take that person's place. The production team will pretend like the contestant was never there, recording a separate first-round competition video for the replacement, and then directly arrange them to join the withdrawing contestant's group to fill the empty spot," An Zhihan shared the update.
"We've been practicing for so long now, can someone just drop in like this?" Su Jinli pondered, finding this sort of scenario quite unbelievable.
"Why not? The guy from Huasen Entertainment is rumored to be really talented. Plus, all the songs for our second round are oldies, nostalgic tunes for those born in the '80s and '90s. Those who are familiar with it won't even need to practice," An Zihan asserted.
Wu Yu noticed An Zhihan eyeing him confidently, almost as if to imply: There’s a new talent from Huasen, you scared yet?
Wu Yu didn't want to entertain him, instead asking, "Won't it be a bit embarrassing to drop into group C all of a sudden?"
"What's there to be embarrassed about? This is where the actor's skills come in, you know?" An Zihan replied confidently.
Wu Yu nodded, "Okay, I get it."
Su Jinli, feeling puzzled, asked, "How did you understand it? I didn’t."
"It's simple. During the recording, make the contestant make a mistake which results in a very low score for the first round and end up in Group C. Then, make a comeback and redeem themselves. It doesn’t embarrass the participant but attracts fans who sympathize," An Zhihan explained.
"Is that even possible? Doesn't that lose the authenticity of the program?" Su Jinli couldn't help but ask.
"What if a candid video comes out before the debut, showing the contestant bickering behind the scenes with another one, slandering each other out of sight? This person would be tarred even before he makes an appearance," An Zhihan worried.
Su Jinli thought for a while, but didn't say anything else: "We have no choice."
"Exactly," An Zihan shrugged his shoulders.
As the three were walking back together, An Zhihan went to the vending machine to buy water again.
An Zhihan is a big water drinker, who consumes a large amount each day and has to buy several bottles each night.
Wu Yu said to Su Jinli, "I'll get you a drink." Then he also went to the vending machine to make a selection.
-----
While Su Jinli was waiting nearby, a girl suddenly approached him. She had long, dark hair scattered over her shoulders. Apparently having practiced hard, her wet top clung to her body, revealing a great figure.
A jacket was tied around her waist and draped over her legs.
She walked up, with her hands behind her back, and asked Su Jinli, "Su Jinli, may we become WeChat friends?"
"Oh, sure," Su Jinli didn't think much about it, pulled out his phone, and added the girl as a WeChat friend.
"My name is Zhang Caini; you can call me Xiao Ni."
"Okay, let me update the remarks..." Su Jinli wrote on the screen.
"I think your singing is excellent. I'm a voice enthusiast and particularly fond of your voice."
"Really? Thank you."
Wu Yu and An Zhihan watched from the side, with An Zhihan looking disappointed, asking Wu Yu, "Isn't this guy clueless? It's clear that the girl is interested in him, but he has no idea."
Wu Yu nodded in agreement, "Just adding her as a friend so easily?"
They both looked like disappointed parents watching their unmotivated son until the girl left.
An Zhihan put his arm around Su Jinli's shoulder, "A girl is flirting with you, and you don't even react?"
"Huh? Didn't we just add each other on WeChat?"
"A girl voluntarily asks for your WeChat ID, and she's not a salesperson. Don't you get what that means?"
"Does she... does she... have feelings for me?" Only then did Su Jinli realize.
"Yeah."
Su Jinli's cheeks turned visibly red, a deep shade of it.
An Zhihan found Su Jinli’s reaction amusing and pinched his earlobe, "Your cheeks are pink. You indeed have fair skin."
"What... what should I do... should I talk to her?" Su Jinli was so nervous that he was beginning to babble.
Wu Yu had been in a bad mood but seeing Su Jinli in this state, he couldn't help but laugh.
"Do you plan to date her?" An Zhihan asked.
"No, I don't have feelings for her yet, I am just unsure what to do."
"Then just be a bit aloof. The harder it is to obtain something, the more value it has."
"I don't understand..."
An Zhihan patted Su Jinli's shoulder. As they climbed the stairs, the group discussed An Zhihan's dating experiences.
As they exited the lift, they had only taken a few steps when a group of girls playing guitar in the hallway noticed them and greeted them.
An Zhihan blew them a kiss.
"Do all you good-looking boys hang out together?" one of the girls asked.
"We three share a dormitory," An Zihan replied.
"And what about Fan Qianting of Daming lake?"
"He doesn't like hanging out with us."
-----
Back in his dormitory, Su Jinli nervously checked the photo album of Zhang Caini on his phone.
Zhang Caini had an elder sister's vibe. She sang a heavy metal rock song in the preliminary round. Her voice was a bit hoarse but filled with charm.
Most of the pictures in her album showcased her wearing heavy smoky eye makeup.
However, when she asked for Su Jinli's WeChat number earlier, she was makeup-free, which gave her an innocent look.
After a while, he came back to his senses and saw the message sent by Xiao Mi.
Xiao Mi: You said I could change my fortune, but why has Yura's luck improved, and not mine yet?
Su Jinli: Yura has done good deeds, so her luck changed faster. Yours will be slower.
Xiao Mi: I have consistently bought lottery tickets for some time now. I am thinking of giving up.
Retreating under his blanket, Su Jinli continued texting her, asking "Can you contact Shen Cheng?"
Xiao Mi: Do you want the truth?
Su Jinli: Hmm.
Xiao Mi: Right now, Yura is only a third-tier artist since her comeback. Shen Cheng is a top-tier artist. He's someone even Yura can't get in touch with.
Su Jinli: Is he that hard to approach?
Xiao Mi: Shen Cheng is a male artist with zero scandals. Do you know what that means? If you're a woman, after making eye contact with him, he will definitely take a step back, smile, and greet you, but he'll never shake your hand.
Su Jinli: Is he a bad person?
Xiao Mi: No, he's actually a charity ambassador. He's just not very approachable. I've heard that he speaks brutally and is quite venomous in his personal life.
Su Jinli: Do you know of any method to meet him?
Xiao Mi: Pay attention to his schedule, become a devoted fan, or work with him once you become famous.
He put down his phone and pondered how to proceed while nestled under the blanket. Suddenly, An Zhihan stepped on his bed and grabbed the rail next to Su Jinli before yelling at him, "Stop sleeping and get up to have some fun!"
Su Jinli's body shuddered in fear. He looked back at An Zhihan nervously, "What's the matter? You scared me to death!"
"There's a new contestant here. Do you want to check them out? They just arrived at the dorm."
"No, I don't feel like going. I'll see them later anyway."
An Zhihan couldn't resist and accompanied Fan Qianting to observe the spectacle.
The arrival of a new player is similar to a new student enrolling in school - it evokes a sense of novelty.
Especially since the new player belongs to Huasen Entertainment.
Approximately fifteen minutes later, both of them returned.
As soon as An Zhihan closed the door after returning, he started complaining: "What's the deal with this guy? Isn't he overly enthusiastic?"
"Keeps calling me cute. What's cute about a grown man like me?" Fan Qianting also joined in the complaints.
Su Jinli peeked out from the upper bunk and asked, "What's wrong?"
"The new player from Huasen, he's nothing but a fake smiling boy. He's always grinning at everyone, being overly enthusiastic with me and Fan Qianting. It makes me really uncomfortable." An Zhihan rubs the goosebumps on his arm.
"Isn't it good to be friendly?" Su Jinli asked, perplexed.
"It's not that, it just feels incredibly insincere to me. I just don't like it." After finishing her reply, An Zhihan steps over to Su Jinli's side, pinching his face, "Big brother prefers people like you, simple and unpretentious."
"You two are disgusting too. Are there any straight men in this competition?" Fan Qianting hid away.
"What? I have three girlfriends!"
"Great, are your kidneys okay?"
"Scumbag." Wu Yu coldly said.
An Zhihan and Wu Yu passed the rest of the night bickering with each other.
-----
The next day was the rehearsal time before the second round of recording.
On this day, An Zhiyan arrived.
During a break in training, Su Jinli was taken by An Zhihan to watch An Zhiyan and several judges record new contestant clips.
The two of them stood next to the audience staircase and due to An Zhihan's status, they were not stopped.
An Zhiyan performed naturally and even whispered to the new contestants which angle to choose to not reveal any mistakes.
Su Jinli also saw Huasen's substitute contestant.
His name was Zhou Wenyuan, and he was the same age as An Zhihan - 19 years old.
Zhou Wenyuan sang an English song with a beautiful melody and a distinct voice.
"He sings pretty well," An Zhihan muttered quietly, hands crossed on his chest.
"Yeah, and his gaze is so captivating," Su Jinli sighed in admiration.
"This is what stage performance is about. That killer gaze, do you get it?"
"Mm-hm, I'm watching."
Midway through his singing performance, Zhou Wenyuan suddenly forgot his lyrics, glancing around awkwardly. He tried to start singing again but missed the beat.
Reading his expression, An Zhihan sneered, "His acting is not bad, those helpless-looking eyes."
Then came the scoring, and as expected, the judges all gave low scores, relegating him to Group C.
Even so, Zhou Wenyuan held back tears as he expressed his gratitude to everyone.
You can't deny that his pitiful act stirred a hint of sympathy.
"He's quite handsome, falls into the cute category," An Zhihan continued his commentary.
"Yeah, he feels very approachable."
"Do you think he is the same type as you? You two clash."
"No way, I'm more of a retro type."
An Zihan retorted, "Give me a break, your character design collapsed a long time ago."
After finishing his recording, An Ziyan moved aside the microphone and stretched a bit.
At this moment, Zhou Wenyuan approached An Ziyan, and carefully asked, "Senior, do you think I performed well just now?"
"Mm, your dramatic act was impressive, and your ability to cry on cue shows your natural acting talent."
"Oh my, being praised by my idol makes me so happy." Zhou Wenyuan showed a broad smile, his entire demeanor radiating sweetness.
"So, you're a fan of mine?" An Zhiyan asked nonchalantly, already walking towards the side of the stage where he spotted An Zhihan.
"Of course, I'm a die-hard fan. I have all your pictures in my wallet." As he said this, he patted his pocket, then suddenly remembered something, "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to bring it before coming onto the show."
"Ah, it doesn't matter. Just focus on doing well in the upcoming contests."
Unexpectedly, Zhou Wenyuan still followed him and chatted about some unrelated topics. "Before participating in this competition, I was watching your TV drama—the one airing right now."
In the midst of conversation, they had already reached An Zhihan. Zhou Wenyuan immediately asked with excitement, "Zhihan, did you come to watch my performance?"
An Zhiyan casually asked, "Are you two familiar with each other?"
"Yes, Zhihan made a special trip to welcome me last night. I like him a lot; I think he's really genuine and incredibly cute."
An Zhiyan nodded. He didn't want to continue the conversation with Zhou Wenyuan. He only reminded, "You should hurry and practice. Your time is quite tight."
"Yes, yes, Senior, you must remember me." Zhou Wenyuan said. He raised his hands above his head, forming a heart shape with his arms, and then left.
As he departed, he nodded to Su Jinli, indicating a smile.
Su Jinli was silent the entire time, because he was scared.
Zhou Wenyuan's aura wasn't particularly strong, but, when he drew nearer, Su Jinli saw his soul.
Not murky, but twisted.
A soul that seemed extremely fierce.
After Zhou Wenyuan left, An Zhihan patted Su Jinli on the shoulder, "Brother, he's my new younger brother."
"Mm, I know." An Zhiyan replied offhandedly, then led them away, "Brother Jiang sent some things to your dormitory, I guess they should have arrived by now."
"Do you want to see my dormitory?"
"Sure." An Zhiyan surprisingly agreed.
"I... I should get back to practice," Su Jinli said, pointing in the direction of the practice room.
"Come along, I have brought a gift for my brother's brother," An Zhiyan said, turning his head towards Su Jinli.
Su Jinli always thought that An Zhihan was joking, but he actually told An Zhiyan about it.
An Zhiyan took it seriously and even brought a gift for him. This left Su Jinli no reason to refuse.
-----
The three returned to the dormitory together, and saw two large suitcases added into the room.
An Zhihan opened the suitcase. Inside, there was a whole suitcase of clothes, all new with tags still attached.
He looked at them one by one and couldn't help but complain, "These clothes are too plain."
"You should dress more modestly for the show," An Zhiyan replied as he sat on a chair, legs crossed.
"What did you prepare for my brother?" After saying this, An Zhihan opened the other suitcase, which once again was full of clothes, "Where is it?"
An Zhiyan got up, found a box under the lower layer of the clothes, and handed it to Su Jinli.
Receiving it, Su Jinli quietly said a "Thank you."
Recently, he found that An Zhihan and Wu Yu were getting along well, and he was no longer too scared of them.
However, he was still afraid of An Zhiyan.
Mainly because An Zhiyan was not a good person, and he feared that the bad guy might like eating fish.
Upon opening the box, he saw a set of calligraphy tools, including brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone. Su Jinli's eyes widened in surprise.
An Zhiyan must have done his homework, as he chose a very high-quality set that ordinary people might not understand. Literary connoisseurs would recognize the value of these calligraphy tools.
An Zhiyan had seen Su Jinli's entrance video, and this revealed his interests.
An Zhihan leaned over, slightly frowning, and asked, "What's the use of this?"
"He really likes it," An Zhiyan replied.
"Thank you, I love it very much," Su Jinli excitedly answered. If he were in a fish's state now, he'd probably vigorously shake his tail.
"See?" An Zhiyan had an I-knew-it expression.
Next, An Zhiyan pulled out a few more boxes: "Here are a new phone, some sports earphones, a tablet, and a PSP. These are things that you young boys like. Take them and use them, I noticed your phone is quite old."
"Can I listen to music on my phone?" Su Jinli asked excitedly, his eyes sparkling.
"Hmm..." An Zhiyan actually felt a little pained by the question.
An Zhihan, together with Su Jinli, opened the boxes. Seeing the earphones, An Zhihan looked a bit envious: "The latest model."
"You can use them."
"That's fine, you use them. I have dozens at home, just in different styles." With a push, An Zhihan turned to chat with An Zhiyan, "Brother, I want the central position in the MV."
An Zhiyan felt annoyed when he heard this: "Get lost, fight for it yourself; I'm not your dad."
"But you are my brother."
"If you call me 'dad', I'll deal with you."
"What kind of logic is that? When you get old, can I provide for you and send you off?"
"I'm only four years older than you," An Zhiyan replied, about to kick An Zhihan.
It seemed as though An Zhihan had anticipated this, hiding behind Su Jinli.
Using Su Jinli as a shield, and facing An Zhiyan with an expression signifying the acceptance of imminent doom, Su Jinli said: "Let's not fight. This is a civilized society. Spread happiness to everyone."
An Zhihan wasn't about to calmly settle down, still shouting from behind Su Jinli: "If you continue this way, I will tell our family that you pinned many things on me when we were young."
"Why do you always tattle?"
"You are the most annoying kind of brother."
"All the trouble you stirred up at school, I was the one who took care of it. Your homeroom teacher would phone me every now and then. How could you not remember these things?"
"You old virgin, you couldn't find a girlfriend, so I had to introduce one to you. In the end, you broke up after a few words. Are you insane?"
"Do I need you to introduce a bunch of internet celebrities to me?!" An Zhiyan could no longer hold it in, pushing Su Jinli away and, in front of Su Jinli, gave An Zhihan quite a few kicks.
Su Jinli watched with trepidation, secretly deciding to no longer envy these two brothers.
An Zhihan was being overly dramatic about the kicks, insistently saying that he was injured and needed to go to Chang Siyin for a medical kit.
Su Jinli quickly said, "I'll go find him."
"No need, you help me tidy up the clothes here, I'll go to the training room."
After saying this, An Zhihan briskly left the room, jogging towards the training room, showing no signs of injury.
An Zhiyan felt helpless, he knew that An Zhihan just wanted to pull the sympathy card, make him help and secure the center position for himself.
He sighed in resignation, hesitating whether or not to help An Zhihan with his mobile phone in his hand.
Don't be fooled by his reluctance on the surface. Behind the scenes, he really did a lot for An Zhihan.
"Um... do you... do you know Shen Cheng?" Su Jinli suddenly asked An Zhiyan in a soft voice.
An Zhiyan looked up at Su Jinli, slightly frowning, and asked, "What?"
"I want to get in touch with him. Can you help me get his contact information?"
"Why are you asking me?"
"I just think you're really capable, so you should be able to get it."
An Zhiyan couldn't help but laugh, yet his smile contained a hint of ruthlessness.
This guy seemed to be afraid of him and usually avoided him. An Zhiyan could pretend not to notice that, but coming here to ask for Shen Cheng's contact information was another matter.
Was this a provocation?
A taunt from Shen Cheng's fan?
An Zhiyan had a bad temper and wasn't particularly personable. He and Su Jinli had never had an in-depth conversation—they were not familiar with each other, nor was there any special fondness.
Accidentally seeing Su Jinli change his clothes once didn’t mean he was obligated to do anything else, did it?
So, laced with biting sarcasm, An Zhiyan asked him, "What do you mean by that?"
"I'm just really anxious to get in touch with Shen Cheng..."
"For what purpose do you want to contact him?"
Su Jinli was pondering whether or not to tell An Zhiyan that Shen Cheng might be his brother when he suddenly heard An Zhiyan's voice, "If you've been paying attention to Shen Cheng and me, you'd know that we're famously at odds."
Su Jinli abruptly looked up, his eyes widening in surprise as they met An Zhiyan's gaze.
An Zhiyan calmly looked back at Su Jinli, observing his expression.
It was rare for a stranger to maintain eye contact with An Zhiyan for more than ten seconds.
Usually, people would become flustered under An Zhiyan's stare, feeling their heart race, their shyness increasing, and ultimately avoiding his gaze.
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to... I..." Su Jinli awkwardly tried to explain, all the while keeping his eyes on An Zhiyan, watching for any changes in his expression. "I was too anxious, and I caused trouble for you. I apologize."
"Tell me why you're afraid of me."
"I'm not..."
"Tell the truth."
Su Jinli felt guilty under An Zhiyan's gaze, and his aura immediately weakened. He lowered his head, sneaking a glance at An Zhiyan before looking down again, "It's because your aura is too strong, and it scares me."
"Look at me."
"Hm?"
"Look straight into my eyes." An Zhiyan reached out, lifting Su Jinli's chin so that Su Jinli faced him. "What do you feel?"
"I do feel something," Su Jinli honestly replied.
"What is it?"
"I'm even more scared now."
"..."
Su Jinli pointed at the suitcase, "Thank you for your gift, I'll help Zhihan pack it up now."
He squatted in front of the suitcase, picking up the clothes one by one and hanging them up to organize before placing them into Zhihan's closet.
An Zhiyan watched Su Jinli, one minute passed, then two, then three.
Why didn't this kid show any feelings?
An Zhiyan changed his position, leaning against the closet, he continued to watch Su Jinli. It was then he realized that Su Jinli had moved to the bedroom door, looking longingly out, waiting for Zhihan to return.
An Zhiyan felt a twinge of frustration, surprisingly.
"Are you a fan of Shen Cheng?" An Zhiyan asked again, posing the question that had been bothering him.
"Yes."
"What do you like about him?"
"Everything about him is good."
An Zhiyan was so exasperated by this answer that his nose seemed to crooked. Still, stubborn as he was, he asked, "Have you seen my work?"
"I haven't." Su Jinli responded truthfully.
"You should take a look, you might come to your senses."
"Oh, I see." After Su Jinli's response, he seemed to want to leave the room.
An Zhiyan was disgruntled again, he drifted to the doorway where two of them, standing side by side, filled up the entryway. "Do you not have the slightest bit of good feeling towards me to?"
Su Jinli thought for a moment, then turned to look at An Zhiyan, his face showing a pained expression, he answered, "Is a tiny bit okay?"
"Because I'm handsome?"
"Because you are Zhihan's brother."
"I'm really indebted to him." An Zhiyan answered through clenched teeth, feeling so annoyed for the first time.
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Notes: This is probably the longest chapter I've ever had to translate. T_T hope you enjoyed reading! Also, I have Adsense now. If any of the ads are too intrusive, feel free to leave a comment and I'll fix them right away.
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