“Truly a lustful Alpha.”
Ming Yi had turned off the setting that rejected calls from strangers in advance.
As he had anticipated, not long after he returned to the hotel, he received a call from Yan Zhiheng.
“One year… that is too long.” Yan Zhiheng’s voice was hoarse. “Let us make it six months.”
Hearing this, Ming Yi smiled and said unhurriedly, “Yan Zhiheng, do you think this is a wet market where we can haggle over prices?”
Yan Zhiheng took a deep breath and gritted his teeth. “Ming Yi, do not go too far. You are threatening me with Xie Yunxie; be careful, or I will tell Mom and Dad.”
“Fine, go ahead and tell them. Let us see if they can save you.” After saying that, Ming Yi hung up the phone dismissively.
He waited a few seconds, and sure enough, the phone rang again.
He answered. This time, Yan Zhiheng finally stopped the nonsense. “You suddenly told me to shelf An An; there is no way we can keep this from Mom and Dad.”
Ming Yi said coldly, “That is a matter for you to consider, not me.”
Realizing he could not get through, Yan Zhiheng said irritably, “But An An still has a lot of follow-up—”
“It seems you are not that anxious either. Let us leave it at that. Goodbye.”
Ming Yi hung up the phone decisively and set it to reject calls from strangers again.
Yan Zhiheng failed to reach an agreement with Ming Yi, so the next morning, he received another severe beating from Xie Yunxie.
Yan Zhiheng could not take it anymore; he was going insane!
He had his assistant contact Ming Yi, which allowed him to speak with Ming Yi once more.
“I agree to your conditions.”
However, Ming Yi said, “The price has gone up. I want to add another condition.”
The veins on Yan Zhiheng’s forehead throbbed. “What other condition do you want to add?”
“I heard Yan An joined a new production recently,” Ming Yi said, toying with a hole in his costume, his tone indifferent. “Have him terminate his contract immediately and leave that cast.”
“You—” Yan Zhiheng’s words were practically forced out through clenched teeth. “Do you know how much criticism An An will face if he does this? And those breach-of-contract penalties—that is not a small sum!”
“Stop putting on an act. You have done the same thing to me before. Why did you not feel sorry for me when I was being vilified back then?” Ming Yi sneered. “The moment I see the trending topic about Yan An terminating his contract, I will call Xie Yunxie. That is the requirement. If you do not accept it, you get beaten. Goodbye.”
The call was heartlessly hung up again. In a fit of rage, Yan Zhiheng lost his composure and swept all the files on his desk to the floor.
“Yan Ming Yi! You!”
Yan Zhiheng took a deep breath and called his secretary, ordering him to handle the matters related to Yan An’s contract termination.
Upon hearing the requirement, the secretary was stunned and confirmed it again. “President Yan, do you really want Young Master Yan An to terminate his contract with the Fall of Dust production team?”
“Do it! As quickly as possible!” Yan Zhiheng pressed against the wound on his forehead, his eyes bloodshot with hatred.
That madman, Xie Yunxie, he would take his revenge sooner or later. He would!
Yan An was filming just fine when he inexplicably received notice of his contract termination with the production team.
He could not believe it was true and called his agent to demand an explanation.
His agent was even more shocked than he was. “It was an order from President Yan. What is going on? Did President Yan not tell you in advance?”
“He did not!” Yan An was also anxious. Everything was going smoothly; why would Yan Zhiheng terminate his contract without telling him beforehand? Fall of Dust was a resource he had worked hard to secure and had the potential to be a massive hit in the future. How could he just terminate the contract? Once the news got out, what would the public speculate about him?
Flustered, Yan An called Yan Zhiheng. “Brother, why did you suddenly terminate my contract?”
Yan Zhiheng’s voice was filled with exhaustion. “An An, I will explain this to you later. Just terminate the contract this time. Once this period passes, I promise I will make it up to you with even better resources.”
“What exactly is going on?” Yan An frowned, disagreeing. “Is it really necessary to terminate? This drama will likely be a huge hit. It is really not worth it to quit halfway, and we still have to pay the penalties. You should at least give me a reason.”
Hearing Yan An’s aggrieved voice, Yan Zhiheng felt a pang of heartache and softened his tone to coax him. “The company ran into some trouble. Do not tell Mom and Dad for now; it will be fine after this period.”
Yan An’s expression was dark; he was not fooled by Yan Zhiheng. What kind of trouble could the company be in that would make Yan Zhiheng choose to pay breach-of-contract penalties just to remove him from the cast?
But Yan Zhiheng was firm. No matter how much Yan An tried to act spoiled, there was no sign he would change his mind. Yan An had to think of another way.
He really did not want to leave this production.
Yan An’s appearance leaned toward the bright and cute side, and his public persona in the industry was that of a “Little Sun.” Consequently, he often played roles like the “neighbor’s younger brother,” “youthful high schooler,” or “innocent junior disciple.” Having played such roles too often, his path had narrowed, and he was eager to transform his image and tear off the labels attached to him.
Fall of Dust was a perfect opportunity for this transformation. Yan An really did not want to lose it, so he chose to ignore Yan Zhiheng’s words and called his mother, asking indirectly about the problems in the family company.
Shen Lirong was bewildered when she heard this. “Zhiheng did not tell me there were any problems with the company.”
Yan An asked aggrievedly, “Then why did Brother suddenly make me quit the cast?”
“What?” Shen Lirong exclaimed. “An An, do not worry. Mom will go ask your brother. I will not let you be wronged for no reason.”
After hanging up with Yan An, Shen Lirong immediately went to confront her eldest son. Learning the reason for her visit, Yan Zhiheng’s already aching head throbbed even harder.
Had he not told An An not to tell Mom about this yet?
Why did he not listen?
“Mom, I will explain this to you later, okay?”
Shen Lirong refused firmly. “No! You come home tonight! If you do not explain this clearly, I am going to the company to find you myself!”
With a splitting headache, Yan Zhiheng had no choice but to agree to go home that night to explain everything that had happened.
…
By dusk, the news that Yan An was suspected of withdrawing from the Fall of Dust cast had hit the trending topics.
Before Xie Yunxie could even see the news, the system let out a sharp alarm.
【Warning! Warning! The plot has deviated by 76.9%! Please fix the plot line as soon as possible! Please fix the plot line as soon as possible!!】
Xie Yunxie, who was working overtime to approve files, was startled. “Damn, how much did you say it deviated? 76.9%! Is this world about to explode?”
The system was also panicked to the point of garbled code: 【I do not know how this happened so suddenly! The protagonist shou suddenly withdrew from the cast without any warning!! Damn it, this is hell!】
Xie Yunxie calmed down first. “It is just missing one movie; how could the plot deviate this much?”
【Because this movie would have allowed the protagonist shou to successfully transform and level up! It is an extremely important part of the protagonist shou’s career path. Once he does not do this movie, many subsequent plot points cannot proceed!】
“It is that serious?” Xie Yunxie frowned, soothing the system. “Do not panic, I will have my secretary investigate it immediately.”
The system tearfully agreed, feeling that its host was very reassuring at this moment.
The secretary came back after the investigation and said, “It seems to be a decision made by Yan An’s company.”
“His company must be crazy to do this,” Xie Yunxie instructed his secretary seriously. “Dig deeper and see if someone is pulling strings behind the scenes or if there is a problem within the Yan family.”
Once the secretary left, the system could not wait to ask Xie Yunxie: 【Host, do you think someone is pulling strings behind the scenes? Who could it be!】
Xie Yunxie analyzed it logically: “The Yan family would not do this voluntarily; someone must be forcing them. And that person’s power must be stronger than the Yan family, which is why the Yan family did not dare to resist.”
The system agreed repeatedly: 【Host is right! So who could it be!】
The system also firmly believed that the Yan family, with their mindless coddling of Yan An, would never voluntarily let him quit, so Yan An must have been harmed by a villain!
Xie Yunxie narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and suddenly said: “System, do you think it could be the protagonist gong?”
The system instinctively retorted: 【How could it be the protagonist gong? Although he has some ‘dark’ attributes, he could not possibly do this to the protagonist shou! This is a story about everyone doting on him, not some messy dog-blood tragedy!】
“Maybe it is the butterfly effect from the 2% plot deviation earlier, causing him to become even darker and more perverted?” Xie Yunxie leaned back in his boss chair, pondering at the ceiling. “Besides, who else has the motive and power to pressure the Yan family?”
The system was bewildered, skeptical, and shaken.
That was true; it seemed there really was no one else besides the protagonist gong.
Xie Yunxie had been watching him; every day, besides beating up Yan Zhiheng, he could not do anything else. As for Ming Yi, who hated Yan An, he was solitary and powerless, and not favored in the Yan family, so it was even less likely for him to pull this off.
Xie Yunxie continued to soothe it: “Anyway, do not worry for now. Let us see what my secretary can find. If it really is the protagonist gong, even if I have to sacrifice the entire Xie Group, I will fight to send Yan An back to that cast!”
The system agreed sorrowfully, desperately accepting reality.
With things happening this way, Xie Yunxie was not in the mood to process documents anymore. He opened his computer and searched for news related to Yan An.
The scrolling keywords were reflected in Xie Yunxie’s pupils, giving those gray-blue eyes a cold undertone.
On the surface, Xie Yunxie acted as if he would go through fire and water, but in his heart, he thought nonchalantly: Could it be that Ming Yi did it?
He had guessed that after Yan Zhiheng was beaten, he might seek out Ming Yi to resolve the issue. But could Ming Yi really understand the meaning he conveyed and grasp the opportunity he created?
For Xie Yunxie, this was undoubtedly an unknown, a test of the tacit understanding between them.
Because before Yan Zhiheng approached Ming Yi, they had not communicated about this matter at all. If Ming Yi had continued to refuse to communicate with Yan Zhiheng, the chance for negotiation would have been lost. If Ming Yi had not realized he could use force against force, using his own position to threaten Yan Zhiheng, he would have missed the chance to sabotage the plot line.
Xie Yunxie thought approvingly: He really is that smart.
Thinking of this, he happily sent a message to Yan Zhiheng, notifying him that he did not need to come over to be beaten tomorrow.
Watching him send the message, the system was immersed in the tragedy of the massive plot deviation and asked gloomily: 【Host, why are you not using Yan Zhiheng to farm points anymore?】
“I have been beating him for four or five days; if I keep going, I will break Yan Zhiheng,” Xie Yunxie said considerately. “Like I said, I have my limits; once I have farmed enough points, I will let him go.”
The system praised him listlessly: 【Not bad, very good.】
Xie Yunxie scrolled through the trending topics for a while, feeling restless. He suddenly had an urgent desire to see Ming Yi and know if Ming Yi was truly working with him.
Today was Ming Yi’s first day of filming; visiting to care for him would not be too much, would it?
Actions followed thoughts. Xie Yunxie closed his computer, forgot about eating, and set off. Two hours later, he arrived at his destination.
Ming Yi’s two assistants were arranged by Xie Yunxie, and he had their contact information. After arriving at the scene, the assistant mentioned that Ming Yi was still filming night scenes. Xie Yunxie, driven by curiosity, pulled some strings and successfully entered the filming site to meet with the assistants.
It was a small grove of trees. With floodlights on, one could faintly see a group of people chasing someone in the back, while one person ran ahead in a pathetic state.
Xie Yunxie recognized after a long while that the disheveled person in front was Ming Yi.
Xie Yunxie asked the assistant in shock: “Is he not playing an Immortal Venerable? Did the script change?”
The assistant looked blank: “No change, there are scenes for the Immortal Venerable, but the director said that since today is the first day, we would start with the chase scene that requires the least acting skills, so that is why—”
Xie Yunxie: “…Alright then.”
In his heart, he thought: What a lousy director. If you do not trust Ming Yi’s acting today, tomorrow I will make sure you cannot reach him when he is a star.
Xie Yunxie stood to the side and watched for a while, and he saw Ming Yi fall several times, which made him feel heartache.
Those falls were for real—did it hurt?
Fortunately, the scene ended successfully. When Director Ji called “Cut,” Xie Yunxie saw that dusty little “mud person” wipe his face and walk toward him.
There were many people on set, making it messy as they moved about. Ming Yi walked slowly through the crowd, his wandering gaze landing on Xie Yunxie, where it suddenly stopped.
Ming Yi showed a surprised expression and jumped up the steps, his ragged clothes and the dust on his face making him look like a nimble little beggar. “Why did you come?”
Xie Yunxie coughed lightly and brought up the excuse he had fabricated before leaving: “Did you not say today was your first day filming? I happened to be nearby and came to see.”
He said this, but his eyes could not help but linger on the exposed neck and chest of Ming Yi.
He could not be blamed for looking; the clothes were just so ragged, they really did not hide much.
Ming Yi noticed his gaze and pulled his clothes together, feeling a bit embarrassed. “What are you looking at? This outfit was meant to be this torn.”
Being caught looking, Xie Yunxie felt his face burning up instantly and hurriedly changed the subject: “The clothes are so thin, are you not cold? Let us go to the lounge and change first.”
Ming Yi’s scenes for the night were done. The assistant brought water for him to clean his face and hands, then tactfully stepped out, leaving the lounge space for President Xie.
Xie Yunxie sat by the side, watching Ming Yi clean himself up like a little cat, feeling inexplicably itchy in his heart.
His gaze shifted from Ming Yi’s fair face to Ming Yi’s ankles, and his eyes suddenly paused, unable to look away anymore: “…What is this?”
Ming Yi looked down following his gaze and saw the black ankle cuff tightly clasped around his ankle. Under Xie Yunxie’s gaze, his toes curled slightly; it felt strange. “It is a prop from the drama… specially for slaves to wear.”
Xie Yunxie’s Adam’s apple rolled, and he could not help but make a rather bold request: “What material is it? Can I touch it?”
Ming Yi’s lips moved, seemingly hesitant, but in the end, he obediently lifted his lower leg and let Xie Yunxie touch the ankle cuff.
Xie Yunxie lowered his head and probed the gap between the cuff and the skin with his finger. “So tight?”
Ming Yi sat propped on the chair and said, “It is not tight, the size is just right.”
“How do you take it off? Do you have to wear it all the time?” Xie Yunxie looked up at Ming Yi.
Ming Yi gave a soft “Hmm.” “Basically, I have to wear it for every scene. You have to use a small metal rod to undo it, it is quite troublesome.”
Xie Yunxie stared at that pair of ankle cuffs for a while, staying silent for a moment.
Black ankle cuffs paired with slender, fair ankles—that is really “refined taste.”
This production crew was also quite perverted.
Of course, Xie Yunxie felt he was a bit perverted too, because as soon as he saw Ming Yi’s ankle cuffs, some unhealthy images flashed through his brain…
Just as Xie Yunxie was struggling to delete those images, Ming Yi’s voice pulled his thoughts back: “What happened to your hands?”
Xie Yunxie looked at his own hands. During the first day of beating Yan Zhiheng, he had not used any protective measures. As the saying goes, every action has an equal and opposite reaction; the way he punched with full force, his own hands could not take it either. At this moment, his knuckles looked bruised and grazed.
Xie Yunxie made a grasping motion and said lightly, “I have been doing physical training these days, hitting a sandbag constantly, and they ended up like this.”
“Training is good, but you cannot forget to protect yourself.” Ming Yi turned, took iodine and a cotton swab from the table, and gestured for Xie Yunxie to hand him his hand.
Xie Yunxie did not know anything else; anyway, as soon as Ming Yi beckoned to him, he was like a large dog trained to shake hands, eagerly resting his hand in Ming Yi’s.
Ming Yi held the cotton swab, gently applying medicine to Xie Yunxie’s fingers. Xie Yunxie’s gaze brushed over his drooping, long eyelashes, and looking down further, he could almost see the scenery deeper down through the open collar…
The gland at the nape of his neck inexplicably began to heat up again, and even Xie Yunxie’s neck and face turned red along with it.
Xie Yunxie felt as if he had been placed in an oven, starting to steam heat.
Ming Yi had not noticed yet, focused on applying the medicine, speaking softly: “If you are hurt like this, do not train for these few days. Rest your hands well.”
Xie Yunxie nodded in a daze: “Yeah, I will not train then.”
The system watched the host acting like this again and felt a little like rolling its eyes.
Just holding hands and talking for a few words, and he cannot handle it?
Truly a lustful Alpha.