Lin Haobai put down the phone and lay on his bed, completely still.
The revelation about the truth behind his dreams with the handsome man had hit him too hard. Right now, he didn’t have the headspace to think about whether to accept the endorsement. All he wanted was to figure out why every time he fell asleep, he ended up inside that figurine. What was so special about that figurine?
He reached over and pulled open the drawer of his bedside table. Inside were some of the tools he had used to make the figurines. Those twelve figurines had all been painstakingly crafted by him, each one a condensation of his effort and sweat. Yet, out of all twelve, he always ended up inside the same one. Where exactly was the problem?
The more Lin Haobai thought, the heavier his head felt, and he rolled around on the bed. He was genuinely afraid of entering that figurine again. Every time he saw that handsome man, it felt like his worldview shifted just a little.
That man, as stunning as a fairy, held an almost fatal attraction for him.
But before Lin Haobai could sort anything out, a few hours later, his phone rang again.
“Brother Wang, didn’t you say I had a few days to think about it?”
Lin Haobai leaned against the balcony railing, gazing at the super-wealthy central area of the villa district. That man… probably lived there.
“Xiao Bai, great news! We just got the endorsement invitation from ‘Lou’ this morning, and by this afternoon, we also received an offer from ‘Lan.’ Both are famous domestic skincare brands. You’ll have to pick one…”
Even though his manager didn’t finish the sentence, Lin Haobai understood perfectly.
Other than the support of his fans, he had no other backing. Having grown up in the entertainment industry, he had never joined any company. When he was young, he relied on directors he worked with to introduce him to new roles. As he grew older, he partnered with Brother Wang to set up a private studio to manage his work.
Now, the two biggest domestic skincare brands were simultaneously seeking him out. Brother Wang wouldn’t let such an opportunity slip away under any circumstances.
After the call ended, Lin Haobai grabbed his tablet and began reviewing the endorsement materials sent to his email.
He was very familiar with the “Lou” brand, since he personally used their skincare products. Thinking about this, his thoughts drifted back to that handsome man, he used “Lou” products too.
As for the “Lan” brand, online opinions were divided, with both praise and criticism. Their products were positioned to compete directly with “Lou.” Each brand’s parent company controlled roughly half of the domestic household chemical market, and their rivalry was fierce.
He had often heard people say that these two companies competed in every possible way, but he didn’t expect they would fight over endorsers as well.
Looking through the materials, Lin Haobai felt inclined to accept the offer from “Lou.” After all, he had always used their products, which focused on natural herbal extracts. By contrast, he had never tried “Lan’s” products, which were full of complex, inscrutable chemical names.
Setting down the tablet, he pinched the bridge of his nose. Just as he was about to get up for a snack, the tablet made a “dong dong” sound. Picking it up, he saw several news notifications from social media popping up.
He casually opened one of the news articles, and suddenly a face full of visual impact appeared before his eyes.
It was him!
The sudden shock made him jump to his feet. The tablet resting on his lap fell to the floor with a thud, but he didn’t even notice.
He felt like a lovesick man who had just found a faithless lover, excited and restless all at once.
This man… this man… he had appeared!
He reached up and patted his flushed cheeks from the excitement, crouched down, picked up the still-lit tablet, and began to study the news article carefully.
The headline read “The Newly Appointed Head of the Ren Group”, and at first glance, it seemed extremely serious. The article itself was standard and straightforward, briefly introducing the Ren Group’s background, business scope, market value, and a short biography of its new head. Lin Haobai skimmed through this information, beginning to get a clearer idea.
He tapped on the image of that exquisitely handsome face displayed on the tablet and murmured softly, “Ren Tianxing… so your name is Ren Tianxing! You look like a fairy, might as well call you Ren Fairy.”
After scrolling through the main text, he reached the comment section, and felt a sudden sense of “beep—” in his mind.
What a terrifying comment section this was.
The text wasn’t formal like the article; it was filled with all kinds of wild, outrageous words.
“I want to tear off his clothes!”
“I want to lick the screen!”
“I just want to touch him!”
…
Countless comments, none focused on the handsome man’s professional abilities, only on his looks. Lin Haobai didn’t know why, but he felt a little angry. Immaturely, he picked up the tablet and started responding to the comments, one by one.
After replying to dozens of comments, he suddenly realized how ridiculous he looked.
He barely knew this handsome man named Ren Tianxing. The only things he knew were that the man had a sharp tongue, loved to joke and tease, and, childishly, spent his days carrying his figurine around and talking to it. Of course, his physique was excellent. Thinking of the images that flashed in his mind, Lin Haobai quickly applied mental “mosaics” to censor them.
He tossed the tablet aside and flopped onto the wooden floor.
Ren Tianxing… what kind of man are you, really?!
But no matter what kind of man you are, I don’t want to have anything to do with you.
Having set that flag in his mind, Lin Haobai picked up his phone and called his agent to have him decline the “Lou” offer. After all, “Lou” was exactly one of the largest brands under the Ren Group.
Of course, he still needed to think over the “Lan” offer. He’d never used their products before and wasn’t confident about them. Being a responsible person, he wouldn’t endorse something he hadn’t tried.
That night, when he once again entered the dream, Lin Haobai remained completely calm.
Opening his eyes, he saw the man in front of him expressionless, fingers flying over the keyboard as he worked. Lin Haobai didn’t know whether he should admire his professionalism.
He had gone to bed at 11 p.m., so by sleep schedule it must have been at least midnight. Yet this man, Ren Tianxing, was still working.
Under the warm orange light, the man focused on his work exuded an unusual charm.
A charm that made one forget about his exquisitely handsome features. Lin Haobai suddenly felt the urge to grab a camera, to capture this unforgettable moment, and post it online so that those who only cared about looks could see what it meant to be more beautiful, wealthier, and harder-working than them.
As if sensing his thoughts, Ren Tianxing, who had been buried in his work, brushed the strands of hair from his forehead and smiled at him: “Little one, today was really tiring! And you… how can you be so willful? I went through all that trouble to get you an endorsement, and you just pushed it away like that.”
Thinking about what his assistant Xiao Cha had reported at noon made Ren Tianxing’s teeth itch in irritation.
This Lin Haotian, he really didn’t know how to value opportunities.
If it were someone else in the entertainment industry, they would have been scheming and scrambling for attention even before the company extended an offer, doing everything they could to win favor. But this Lin Haobai? Looks clever on the outside, but when it comes to doing things, he’s ridiculously naïve.
If it weren’t for the fact that he looked so much like Ren Tianxing’s favorite chocolate, and handling him felt so incredibly comfortable, he really would have wanted to smack him a few times.
“You! Stop being so naïve. Such a good opportunity, and you’re just pushing it away. And I hear you got that ‘Lan’ offer… don’t tell me you actually plan to accept it!”
Ren Tianxing chattered on, extending a finger to lightly flick the silly little figurine.
Lin Haobai felt as if his forehead had just taken a direct hit, a sharp sting. All the while, Ren Tianxing continued speaking in his low, husky voice.
“You absolutely must not take that endorsement, you’ll regret it. But don’t worry. Daddy will give you another chance.”
As he spoke, Ren Tianxing gave the little figurine in front of him a mysterious smile.