“Snap—”
Before Li Qing could even open his eyes, he was slapped across the face and tumbled onto the large bed behind him. He curled into a ball, his cheek burning with intense pain. His whole body felt terrible as if he were being consumed by fire, thirsty and overheated all at once.
“Hmph, refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit!”
The person who had struck him was a greasy, middle-aged man with a potbelly. At that moment, he was leering greedily at the slender, cool-tempered young man. Due to the intense struggle moments before, the youth’s crisp white shirt was wrinkled, revealing his slender waist and sexy collarbones. Under the influence of some kind of drug, his porcelain-white skin had flushed a deep red. The slightly swollen slap mark on his face only added a touch of tragic beauty to his already captivating features.
The middle-aged man watched as the youth struggled to sit up, only to collapse again from exhaustion. The man’s lips curled into a grin of triumph. He slowly loosened his tie, preparing to thoroughly enjoy this grand feast.
The scene before them infuriated San Sui: “Holy crap, how arrogant can one person get? They actually dare to bully my host!?”
Just as the middle-aged man was about to pounce, he saw the young man on the bed suddenly enveloped in a ball of red light. A blood-red vine whipped out from the light, striking the man across the face with such force that he was sent flying several meters away.
This supernatural scene scared the daylights out of the greasy man. He had always been a staunch materialist, but now he was forced to believe that monsters existed in this world.
“Help… help me! A monster! A demon—”
The man screamed for his life as he tried to scramble away, but San Sui used the vine to drag him back. The red vine wrapped around his neck, slowly tightening. The man’s eyes were filled with terror; he clawed desperately at the weapon around his throat, but it was useless. His legs kicked frantically in panic until, after a moment of struggle, he fainted.
San Sui retracted its spell and hovered over Li Qing’s wrist, swaying back and forth. “Host, wasn’t I impressive!?”
Li Qing, struggling with discomfort, wrapped himself tightly in the quilt. “San Sui… I seem to be… help me…”
San Sui suddenly became coy. “Ah? That wouldn’t be appropriate, would it? We aren’t compatible in terms of ‘specs,’ and besides, I can’t take on a human form right now. I have the heart to help but lack the ability.”
Li Qing: “…” Who is the one not thinking clearly here!? “Find me an antidote!”
San Sui giggled. “I’m just teasing you. Host, you have two options. First, I can use my energy to clear the drugs from your body, but there will be some residue it’s early in the morning and the day is long, so you’ll just have to endure it. Second, this is a luxury hotel, and I just discovered that your husband is staying in the room next door. Do you want to go find him?”
Li Qing, curled into a ball, slowly reached a hand out from the quilt and made a peace sign. The second option, of course! Why suffer alone when I have a husband?
San Sui transported its host to the door. It thought for a moment and removed the injuries from the greasy man’s body; there were only two people in the room, and if he had obvious wounds, it would be easy to suspect the host, making it hard to explain. San Sui didn’t remove the man’s memories, however. As long as it didn’t manifest physically, no one but the host could see it. The man wouldn’t find any evidence, and he would be left to suffer endless nightmares.
Once they were outside the room, San Sui stopped supporting Li Qing. “Host, it’s up to you now. I’m going to sleep for a bit. Call me when you’re done, and I’ll transmit the story line and the original owner’s memories to you.”
San Sui retracted its vines, and Li Qing nearly collapsed. Breathing heavily, he leaned against the door and looked at the room next door. It wasn’t far, yet it took him a full minute to walk the distance…
Si Muchen was sitting on the sofa reading a script, while his manager sat beside him, logged into a burner account and bickering with “anti-fans.” Watching He Xiao become increasingly agitated, Si Muchen felt helpless. “Is it really necessary? It’s not that big of a deal.”
He Xiao was so angry he stood up on the sofa. “Of course it’s necessary! You helped Director Wang with a ‘double-male lead’ film purely out of old classmate camaraderie and didn’t even ask for a fee that was already being too accommodating. And what happened? That green-tea-bitch actor latched onto you. When that failed, he started hinting everywhere that you were taking advantage of him and using your influence to suppress him. What is wrong with that guy!? That pitiful act of his is nauseating. Now your reputation is damaged, and those anti-fans are saying you’ve been single for thirty years because you like men. Hmph, I’m going to scold him to death!”
Si Muchen pointed at the door. “Stop scolding. Someone is knocking; go take a look.”
He Xiao turned around to keep scolding while grabbing Si Muchen’s tablet to log into another account a double-pronged attack!
Si Muchen: “…” My manager has gone mad.
The bodyguard put down his breakfast and prepared to head to the door, but Si Muchen stopped him. “You keep eating; I’ll go see.”
As a Grand Slam Best Actor, Si Muchen had both looks and talent, with over two hundred million Weibo followers. There were plenty of stalker fans who wanted to track his movements, so he didn’t open the door directly, instead checking the video doorbell first to see who was there.
“Ah… mmh… so hot…”
Li Qing used one hand to undo his buttons while leaning on the door with the other, looking at the closed door with resentful eyes. Is he taking a dump in there? Why so slow!
Inside the room, Si Muchen was stunned. In his many years in the industry, he had encountered this situation more than once. He had never been moved; he usually felt only disgust and irritation. But now, he was shaken. Who could possibly resist this!?
Si Muchen swallowed hard. His hand moved faster than his brain, and the door swung open, completely forgetting the possibility that this person might be a stalker fan.
Li Qing collapsed into his arms. “I… save me…”
Si Muchen held the scorching hot body, feeling somewhat at a loss. This person seems to have been drugged! He wouldn’t be looking for me to help him satisfy the drug’s effects, would he?
At the thought of this possibility, Si Muchen caught the hand that was wreaking havoc on his body.
No, no, no. He was very serious about relationships. If it were love at first sight, he had to pursue the person properly; he couldn’t just “hit a home run” immediately.
But…
Li Qing held him tighter. “I’m so hot… want… save me…”
The manager and the bodyguard noticed the anomaly at the door: “!!!” Our artist’s innocence is in danger!
They rushed over to separate them, but Si Muchen frowned, stepped back while holding the person, and shielded Li Qing’s stunning face against his own shoulder, refusing to share. “What are you doing?”
He Xiao was shocked: “We’re trying to save you! It’ll be over if you’re photographed like this! Why does it feel like you don’t really want to be saved?”
“Forget it. You all go out first.”
“Huh?”
“Get out!”
He Xiao’s emotions were in turmoil, his hands flailing chaotically in the air as he stuttered: “No, you… he… this… is it appropriate?”
Si Muchen held the person in his arms tightly with one hand and used his other to open the door wider. “Get out now!”
Before He Xiao could finish his sentence, he was dragged out the door by the bodyguard, and his wild, desperate waving was of no use.