In the spacious private room, about twenty handsome men and beautiful women were seated. The dishes on the table had already gone cold, and empty wine bottles were scattered all over the floor. Only the alcohol stove was still bubbling with steam, slowly rising under the glaring chandelier.
In the noisy room, a handsome man sat quietly in the corner, looking down at his phone. Under the light, his long eyelashes were distinct and clear.
On the phone screen was a photo of a man lounging lazily in a chair with his legs crossed. He wore a tilted birthday hat on his head, and in front of him was a pink birthday cake exuding a girlish charm. He had soft and clean features, and when he smiled, his eyes squinted into slits, resembling the cute fox on the cake.
A barely noticeable smile tugged at the corners of Shen Huai’s lips. He found it inexplicably adorable that Song Xueyang and the fox appeared in the same photo.
His fingers brushed back and forth over the photo, as if casually wiping away smudges on the screen. He scrolled down to see birthday wishes from netizens and big names in the e-sports circle.
“Happy Birthday, Captain Song!”
“Happy Birthday, hubby!! Is it really okay for a bunch of grown men to order such a pink cake? The fox on the cake gets a thumbs up!!”
“Seeing my hubby still looking so handsome today puts my mind at ease! Happy Birthday!”
Reading the varied comments from netizens, Shen Huai felt a warmth in his heart. Most of the comments under his Weibo were about his acting skills and his father, and seeing those rumors and gossip always made him feel that this job was meaningless.
Liu Yueran, who was chatting and laughing among the crowd, walked over and waved a hand in front of Shen Huai’s eyes.
“Big star, aren’t you going to have a couple more drinks?”
Seeing it was Liu Yueran, Shen Huai’s expression relaxed a bit. “I’ve already had four glasses.”
“That’s not much!”
“White wine.”
“…They’re really ruthless.”
Liu Yueran sat down beside him. She noticed Shen Huai browsing Weibo and remembered that almost every major actor in the recent movie “Desperate Path” had won an award, except for Shen Huai, who got nothing but his paycheck.
Recalling the almost vicious comments online, Liu Yueran felt a pang of heartache. She couldn’t understand how Shen Nuo could be so heartless as to let his son be ridiculed without doing anything. With Shen Huai’s status, more people should be trying to curry favor with him, but because of Shen Nuo’s strictness and Shen Huai’s aloofness, those who tried and failed ended up mocking him.
“Don’t take those online comments to heart. It’s just that you started at a high point, so the audience has high expectations of you. At 21, many actors your age can’t even speak clearly when the camera starts rolling. The road is long, and in a few years, you definitely won’t be the same as you are now.”
Liu Yueran spoke with a hint of envy. In the entertainment industry, where youth is a commodity, being young is an asset. Shen Huai entered the circle earlier than all of them, and the experience he accumulated over the years was a valuable treasure that others could only dream of.
“I won’t act anymore.”
The low voice gently reached her ears.
Liu Yueran was stunned for a couple of seconds before slowly turning her head.
Shen Huai met her gaze calmly. He had grown up acting with his father, mostly interacting with actors on set and rarely speaking with peers. Liu Yueran was his only friend of the same age, and he had no intention of hiding anything from her.
Liu Yueran understood Shen Huai. This man was usually quiet and rarely spoke, so he seldom wasted words on jokes.
“My mom passed away early, and my dad raised me. As far back as I can remember, I grew up on set, watching him act and acting with him. He never asked if I liked it or if I wanted to.”
Shen Huai’s gaze drifted to the distant banquet table, where a group of young people were drinking and singing in cliques. Their high spirits seemed noisy and unreal.
Liu Yueran suddenly felt that Shen Huai really didn’t belong here. His personality and mindset seemed unable to integrate into this world, as if every inch of his skin was out of place.
“I’m already 21. I don’t want to waste time on meaningless things,” Shen Huai said lightly.
Liu Yueran laughed freely. Yes, who said that someone who has acted since childhood must love acting? Who said that having an international film emperor as a father means you must have great acting skills?
Everyone has different life goals. How many people are lost in this false prosperity, chasing fame, profit, and money, having long forgotten their dreams?
She admired Shen Huai’s carefree attitude and envied him for having the capital to be so.
Liu Yueran didn’t ask anything else. She patted Shen Huai on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s go back and have another drink!”
Shen Huai didn’t refuse and returned to the table to drink.
Someone took out their phone to check, and gradually, the people at the table began to look at Shen Huai differently, with a hint of curiosity, whispering among themselves.
Shen Huai had always been a controversial figure in the class, with many disliking him. He was used to it and ignored their little actions.
Liu Yueran, however, couldn’t stand it after a few drinks. “We’ve been classmates for four years, and we have the fate to gather together. If you have something to say, say it to my face. It’s been less than a year since graduation. In two or three years, will you pretend not to know each other even if you see each other on the same set?”
Liu Yueran had a lot of influence in the class, and as soon as she spoke, someone couldn’t sit still.
“It’s not that, Sister Ran,” he stammered, taking out his phone. “It’s just that the official statement from Shen’s company just came out, saying that Shen Huai has terminated his contract with the company and… that he’s quitting the circle.”
The once noisy private room suddenly fell silent, with all eyes fixed on the person involved.
Under everyone’s gaze, Shen Huai calmly opened Weibo. An hour ago, the official statement from Promise Company announced that he had terminated his contract with the company for personal reasons, subtly expressing his intention not to act anymore.
The company Shen Huai signed with was his father’s, so the termination didn’t require him to do anything. He didn’t expect the process to be completed so quickly, and the announcement to be made at such an inopportune time.
Professor Xu was puzzled. “Shen Huai, what’s going on?”
Shen Huai stood up and bowed slowly to Professor Xu. “Professor Xu, acting has never been my dream. Thank you for your guidance. I’ll visit you another day.”
He picked up his coat and turned to look at his classmates at the table. “I wish you all a bright future.”
Those light words felt like a heavy stone dropped into everyone’s hearts.
They had envied Shen Huai’s resources, envied him for having a film emperor father, envied him for standing at a height they could never reach from the start. The only consolation was that Shen Huai was a hopeless case.
What good were the best resources and the strongest background? He was still criticized by netizens every day and would eventually be trampled underfoot by them. That feeling was much more satisfying than trying to curry favor with him.
But they never expected Shen Huai to quit the entertainment industry so early. Everything they envied and coveted was something he never cared for.
Shen Huai put on his coat and left the restaurant. He needed to hide quickly to avoid being discovered by reporters. But as soon as he stepped out the door, a group of people rushed out of the darkness.
“Shen Huai! Are you quitting the entertainment industry because the criticism from netizens is too much pressure for you?”
“Shen Huai, are you really never going to act again? Aren’t you afraid of disappointing your father?”
A barrage of questions accompanied by flashing lights came at him one after another. Shen Huai pressed his lips tightly and said nothing, his eyes quickly scanning the roadside for an escape route.
At that moment, the headlights of a van at the entrance lit up, and the streetlight briefly illuminated Song Xueyang’s face.
Without thinking, Shen Huai ran over, yanked open the car door, and jumped in, slamming the door shut.
His stomach churned, and he couldn’t care less about the shocked people in the car. He urged, “If you don’t drive, I’m going to throw up.”
“Don’t! I just had the car cleaned!” The man in the front seat slammed on the gas, and the car shot out like an arrow.
Even after driving a long way, Shen Huai clung tightly to the door handle, as if afraid a reporter might catch up.
His head was spinning. He had already drunk a lot, and after being chased by reporters in the cold wind, he felt dizzy and disoriented in the swaying car.
The driver asked, “Big star, where are you going?”
Shen Huai didn’t respond. He felt too uncomfortable to say a word.
Besides, with Song Xueyang there, what was there to worry about?
If it was Song Xueyang, he would definitely handle those reporters.
Thinking this, Shen Huai relaxed his grip on the car door.
Seeing him silent, Song Xueyang gently patted his shoulder. “Shen Huai? You want to go…”
Before he could finish, Shen Huai’s body went limp, and he fell straight into his arms. Song Xueyang quickly reached out, catching him off guard.
The cold head bumped against his chest, and the fluffy hair almost blended with the black fur collar of his down jacket. The streetlights outside the window cast fleeting shadows on his face, like a sleeping elf one couldn’t bear to disturb.
Song Xueyang’s heart seemed to soften as well. He saw the white breath from Shen Huai’s nose and whispered, “Brother Kun, turn up the heat a bit.”
“Okay.” The manager glanced in the rearview mirror. “Where are we going?”
“Back to the club.”
He turned his head to see three small heads lined up on the car seat, their bright eyes fixed on the person in his arms.
Song Xueyang chuckled and knocked on each of their heads. “What are you looking at? Sobered up already?”
Only then did they lie back down.
Song Xueyang lowered his head. Shen Huai’s fluffy head was close at hand, and his soft hair looked very inviting. He resisted the urge to touch it and adjusted Shen Huai to a more comfortable position.
Shen Huai slept soundly, seemingly without any guard against him. His whole body was relaxed, a stark contrast to the tense figure clutching the car door earlier, afraid of reporters.
Song Xueyang had learned a lot of psychology since childhood. He knew that every subconscious reaction had an underlying meaning. Shen Huai sleeping so peacefully meant he not only believed Song Xueyang wouldn’t harm him but also trusted him to handle those persistent reporters.
Song Xueyang smiled. This feeling of being trusted by someone with no prior connection was indeed very interesting.
Of course, if he couldn’t shake off a few reporters, he wouldn’t be the headache of many professional teams.
The car stopped at the club’s dormitory building. The team manager helped the three brothers in the back seat out of the car, then came to assist Song Xueyang in getting the drowsy Shen Huai out.
For some reason, whether it was being touched or the cold outside, Shen Huai suddenly woke up.
He saw a stranger holding his arm, and his sleepy eyes widened in an instant, pushing him away with force. This push made him a bit unsteady, but he was caught by someone on the other side. He quickly turned his head, grabbing the person’s arm tightly, as if about to perform a takedown move.
But when he recognized the person as Song Xueyang, it was as if someone had flipped a switch, and he gently released his grip.
The pushed-away team manager: Ugly people have no rights, huh?
Song Xueyang was also a bit surprised. He watched as Shen Huai slowly closed his eyes, voluntarily extending his hand for support, letting himself be led. He was truly obedient and a bit submissive.
He escorted them back to their room and then took Shen Huai to his own dorm.
The team manager was a bit worried. “What are you going to do with him?”
Song Xueyang supported Shen Huai’s slipping body. “Let him sleep here for the night. We’ll deal with the rest tomorrow.”
The manager nodded. Song Xueyang was sharper than most thirty-somethings. Nothing would happen with him around.
“Brother Kun, it’s late. You should get some rest.”
“Alright, contact me if anything comes up.”
The Maple Moon team’s dormitory conditions were quite good, with two people per room and a two-bedroom, one-living room layout.
Song Xueyang’s roommate had just retired this year, so the room was empty. However, it hadn’t been cleaned, and the bedding was gone. He couldn’t let someone sleep on the bare bed.
He placed Shen Huai on the sofa and went to his bedroom to take a shower.
The manager had driven the team car tonight. Although they had shaken off the reporters, they could easily trace it back to Maple Moon if they put in a little effort. Entertainment reporters weren’t as easy to fool as e-sports reporters. Song Xueyang had a feeling he’d be in the news by morning.
Suddenly, there was a rush of footsteps outside, and the bathroom door was flung open. Shen Huai rushed to the side and vomited into the toilet.
Naked Song Xueyang: …
It seemed thinking about tomorrow was still too early.