At nine o’clock the following morning, in the CEO’s office of Fengqian Media.
Ruan Qing sat in the chair across from Chu Chenfeng, his hands resting obediently on his knees as he listened to the young President Chu explain the details of the dating show.
Unlike conventional dating shows, Heartbeat Experiment featured a same-sex romance concept. The show would first invite a few male celebrities, and then netizens would vote to match them into ideal pairs. These “intern couples” would then go on dates together. At the end of the show during the final selection, the intern couples could choose to genuinely enter a relationship or revert back to being strangers.
In short: the viewers got to choose their own favorite ships.
Chu Chenfeng wanted Ruan Qing to look into this project because he found the concept fresh and believed it had strong hit potential. Ruan Qing had previously mentioned that he liked men, making him the most suitable choice in the whole company.
Although Ruan Qing appeared gentle and obedient on the surface, back when he had just debuted, he had directly addressed his relationship history on Weibo.
Artists signed under Fengqian Media had a distinct trait: they felt genuinely human and actually dared to treat Weibo like their personal friends list.
Chu Chenfeng was fairly relaxed with management in this area, leaving account passwords in the hands of the artists themselves.
At the time, Ruan Qing had shared a book he was reading on Weibo, which happened to feature a passage about love and romance.
A netizen asked: Why the sudden urge to read this book?
Ruan Qing V replied: It reminded me of someone I had a crush on for a long time. I felt a bit moved.
Netizens: ???
Fans: ???
【Did you two end up together in the end?】
Ruan Qing replied: No, but I’ve already let it go.
Fans: No way, bro, with looks as handsome as yours, she still didn’t end up with you?
Ruan Qing V replied: He probably doesn’t like men, and he might not even know me.
Netizens: Holy crap, bro, you’re gay?
Fans: No way, bro, you loved so humbly? My heart aches QAQ
Ruan Qing V replied: It’s alright, I’m already over it 【hug】.
Before long, the reposts, comments, and likes exploded, and the topic #RuanQingCrush shot straight onto the trending searches.
When Public Relations asked Chu Chenfeng if they needed to take down the trending topic, the young President Chu consulted Ruan Qing’s opinion and then decided to leave it alone.
The boy who looked so obedient back then hadn’t panicked in the slightest. He calmly apologized for causing trouble for everyone, saying there was no need to handle it and that he would prove himself through his work.
“Besides, the fans asked, so I answered. There’s nothing to hide—they’re my own fans.”
Having taken over Fengqian not long ago, Chu Chenfeng said, “Alright, I trust you.”
Fast forward to the present, and the well-behaved, slightly timid young man had already won the Best Actor award.
Chu Chenfeng said, “Of course, it depends on your own opinion. If you don’t like this project, you can decline it.”
“If you meet someone you like, you can pursue it. If you’re not interested in the other person, you can just reject them at the final selection. If anyone lacks eyes and dares to harass you, I’ll handle it for you.”
As the young President Chu said the last sentence, he confidentially curled his lips upward, lowering his eyes as he took a sip of the coffee in his hand.
Ruan Qing’s eyelashes fluttered slightly, his lips parting briefly before he finally said he needed some time to think about it.
Chu Chenfeng nodded. “Mm, think it over first. If you really don’t want to go, there’s no need to force yourself.”
He waved his hand to let Ruan Qing leave, leaning back lazily into his chair. Hooking a slender finger around the arm of his gold-rimmed glasses, he cast aside the glasses he used to act cold and aloof, pulling out his phone to scroll through Weibo instead.
His soft, ink-black hair had grown a bit long, the ends resting against his neck. The angle of his tilted head as he raised his hand to look at his phone gave his side profile an increasingly languid beauty.
Ruan Qing had posted a Weibo update today. The young President Chu looked at the number of likes and comments with satisfaction and gave it a like in passing.
Next came the other artists he had signed, giving each of them a like in turn.
One hand scrolled on his phone while the other tapped gently on the desk, contemplating his artists’ future career paths as he clicked like after like.
Then he scrolled past his younger brother’s latest post showing off his relationship. His eyebrows knitted together slightly, but he still ended up leaving a like.
A few minutes later, Ruan Qing knocked on the door.
Chu Chenfeng instantly sat up straight and called for him to enter.
“President Chu, I—I’ve made up my mind.”
Chu Chenfeng asked, “So fast?”
“There’s no rush, you can take your time to think it over.”
Ruan Qing’s face flushed slightly red. “Mm, I’ve already made up my mind. I can participate.”
At this point, he lowered his gaze. “It’s also pretty good to get to know some new people.”
The young President Chu paused for two seconds, handing over the document on his desk. “Take a look at the content first to see if there are any issues.”
Ruan Qing read through it carefully. “Mm, no issues.” Since this project was personally selected by the young President Chu, there naturally wouldn’t be any issues.
“Good, then it’s settled.”
Something crossed Chu Chenfeng’s mind, and he smiled. “What kind of person do you like? I wonder who they’ll vote for to be your intern partner.”
Ruan Qing let out a soft “Ah,” his face flushing even redder.
The young President Chu stopped teasing the obedient kid. “Rest assured, the production team has given guarantees. Regardless of who you’re paired with as an intern couple, it’s just dating—no one will be allowed to cross the line or engage in one-sided harassment.”
He had already personally verified this point. The production crew had even stated that they wouldn’t share a room at any point during the entire show.
Ruan Qing nodded. “Oh.”
He had a magazine photoshoot in the afternoon, so he stood up to leave.
Before stepping out, he mustered his courage to crack a joke: “Then what about you, President Chu? What kind of person do you like?”
The young President Chu took another sip of his coffee. “Not telling you.”
“I’m not the one going on the show.”
Ruan Qing shuffled out slowly. “Oh.”
Chu Chenfeng closed his eyes, driving a certain figure that shouldn’t be there right out of his head. “Wait.”
“There’s a banquet coming up in a while, don’t forget about it.”
“Star Pulse Audio will be hosting a salon. Have your manager take you there.”
Ruan Qing had a good voice; perhaps there would be a suitable opportunity.
“Oh, alright.”
After Ruan Qing stepped out, the cool and distant young President Chu returned to his lazy posture. Thinking of a certain person he had run into yesterday, he flipped through the documents in his hand with a touch of annoyance.
He casually pulled open the drawer beside him, retrieved a sea salt toffee, tore open the wrapper, and took a bite.
Most of the candy in the drawer had been brought over by Chu Xiyao.
Though the young President Chu claimed that “only kids eat candy, how childish,” his hands honestly transferred all the candies to the most convenient drawer.
Last time his younger brother came, he brought a whole bunch. After the young President Chu finished eating the toffees, he casually felt around, only to find that all that remained were the unpalatable fruit candies.
Not only was he secretive about eating candy, but he was also terribly picky. If it was too sweet, he wouldn’t eat it; if it wasn’t sweet enough, he wouldn’t eat it either.
Chu Chenfeng once again forcibly ejected that certain someone from his mind, replied to two emails, and when lunch break arrived, put on a pair of sunglasses and drove straight to the mall.
The boutique supermarket was located on the B1 floor of the shopping mall, with very few people inside. The young President Chu pushed his sunglasses up onto his head and began selecting items, ranging from sea salt toffee to chocolate sticks.
Seeing the bear-shaped chocolate sticks, the corners of his lips curved into a smile as he picked up three or four extra bags.
Turning into the beverage aisle, his fingers brushed against an apple juice bottle, making contact with another hand that reached out beside him.
The warm back of the hand touched his and parted in an instant, accompanied by a low, gentle voice close by: “Sorry.”
Chu Chenfeng turned his head and saw Jiang Mingshen standing beside him. He coldly shifted his gaze away.
Both of them were in S City. Aside from the charity gala yesterday, they had barely met since their breakup. Yet he had heard Jiang Mingshen’s name quite a few times; a tech mogul who had suddenly emerged, quickly becoming a hot commodity in S City’s business elite. Not long ago, he had acquired Jiang Chen. It was said that Jiang Chen was quite chaotic at the time, and it was almost single-handedly that he had stabilized the situation.
Now, Jiang Mingshen’s tone when saying “sorry” didn’t carry the slightest hint of surprise—it was obvious he had seen him long ago.
Chu Chenfeng believed he had no habit of giving an ex a good attitude. He tucked the shopping basket filled with bear-shaped chocolate sticks closer to his legs, stepping two paces further away from him.
When he reached for a drink, his body leaned forward, and his knee bumped against the shelf. It was only a light bump, yet his eyes instantly misted over.
The corners of his beautiful eyes immediately flushed a ring of red.
Aside from his parents, the young President Chu had never told anyone about his extreme pain sensitivity. Even a slight bump would hurt so much he could barely stand it. Because of this, he was terribly afraid of pain in his daily life.
What was even worse… was that he couldn’t control his tears.
His eyelashes were quickly wet with moisture, and right in front of his ex, no less. Being so afraid of pain, he could only press his lips together without daring to exert too much force, turning his face away from Jiang Mingshen as he endured the pain and walked to the aisle on the other side.
He knew Jiang Mingshen was watching him the whole time, using that drop-dead handsome, punchable face of his.
The shelves were arranged so unreasonably, almost making him cry right in front of his ex. Once Fengqian grew bigger and stronger, he would acquire this store.
The young President Chu touched the outer corner of his eye; a tiny teardrop clung to his fair finger, trembling on the verge of falling.
He wiped it with a handkerchief, waited until the corners of his eyes were no longer red and the pain gradually subsided, and only then carried his shopping basket toward the checkout counter.
Jiang Mingshen lined up behind him during checkout.
The young President Chu wouldn’t let his ex look at his shopping basket, yet he double-standardly peeked at his ex’s basket on the sly.
It was also a pile of snacks and candy.
Back when he was dating Jiang Mingshen, he didn’t remember the man loving sweet things.
Chu Chenfeng quickly took the items out of his shopping basket. When he grabbed the four or five boxes of bear-shaped chocolate sticks, the tips of his ears turned red on the sly.
He gave a soft cough, casually grabbing a pack of chewing gum nearby to relieve the awkwardness.
Only after handing the item over to the cashier did he realize that what he held in his hand wasn’t gum, but a box of condoms.
Chu Chenfeng: …
Behind him, Jiang Mingshen’s gaze lingered on the square box.
Naturally, the young President Chu couldn’t possibly return it right in front of his ex.
Holding the box with a finger hooked through it, he tilted his chin upward toward his ex behind him, curling his lips into a provocative smile before tossing it into the shopping bag.
Whether it was an illusion or not, the look in Jiang Mingshen’s eyes deepened by several shades as he looked at him.
The young President Chu had barely set foot out of the boutique supermarket when his wrist was pinned by President Jiang of Jiang Chen Holdings, pressing him against the car.
The young man who had been smiling all the way to the garage froze for two seconds. “Jiang Mingshen!”
The man, nearly 1.9 meters tall, effortlessly enveloped him and pinned him against the car.
Looking at the excessively beautiful face before him, the man lowered his long eyelashes, his gaze tracing over those handsome brows and eyes bit by bit before he finally spoke, his tone low, slow, and almost coaxing: “Are you going on a date? With whom? That secretary of yours? She’s not suitable for you.”
Even while being held nearly wrapped in his arms, the young President Chu refused to lose verbally: “Hmm?”
“Oh, you mean that.” He tilted his chin up and leaned in close to Jiang Mingshen’s ear, whispering in a low tone: “It has nothing to do with a girl. It’s… my new boyfriend.”
“What, could it be that President Jiang has been single all this time and got jealous?”
Jiang Mingshen didn’t answer, his gaze lingering on those lips that parted and closed.
Belatedly, the young President Chu licked his lips and pushed the man away.
Jiang Mingshen didn’t use force—otherwise, given the gap in physical strength between the two, just the action of pinning his wrist alone could have hurt him to the point of tears.
“None of your business.” The proud young President Chu pulled open the car door and tossed his snacks to the side.
He rolled down the window, leaning lazily against the frame, pulling down his sunglasses to cover his eyes. “So sorry, President Jiang, I just got a new boyfriend.”
“As for you, could it be that you haven’t dated anyone else since our breakup?”
“How tragic, President Jiang.”