Sheng Zhiyu didn’t know when Qi Fan had left; by the time he woke up in the morning, the man was already gone.
After Gu Wangzhou took the “protagonist shou” (Ruan Chen) away, there was no further movement. Sheng Zhiyu suspected Gu Wangzhou had a penchant for cold wars. Whenever someone didn’t follow his will, he would naturally give them the cold shoulder for a while.
【In a normal plot, you should be so heartbroken by Gu Wangzhou’s change of heart that you lose your appetite, moping for eight hours a day like a walking “waiting-for-the-prodigal-son-to-return” stone.】
Sheng Zhiyu lightly blew on his tea, leaning back on the sofa expressionlessly as he watched an apocalyptic zombie movie on the projector.
[I’m already “waiting.”]
Watching a zombie on the screen get shot in the head, Lin Weiyu remained silent for a moment before turning to check on Gu Wangzhou’s status.
【…Am I blind? Why is Gu Wangzhou’s favorability and love for the protagonist shou decreasing? Xiao Yu, what’s your take?】
Sheng Zhiyu: [The PGM Hecate II sniper rifle… the prop department is quite professional.]
Lin Weiyu: “…”
Your interest in Gu Wangzhou is even lower than your interest in a sniper rifle?
[With their twisted personalities, it would be a miracle if they actually got along.]
One was gloomy, the other was a drama queen; tying them together was practically doing a public service.
That said, Lin Weiyu’s eyelid twitched behind the mission terminal, sensing a bad omen.
【A new mission is in: You must personally visit Gu Wangzhou to apologize and suggest a date to salvage the relationship. Then, at the date location, you’ll “accidentally” run into the protagonist shou who is about to be harassed by a corrupt boss. On the surface, you’ll engage in a love triangle; in reality, you’ll facilitate their reconciliation.】
As a “tool” supporting character, besides harvesting emotional points from the protagonists, one had to intervene when the plot veered off course. When the main couple quarreled, the support had to act as a wingman.
The reason those two hadn’t reconciled yet was unclear perhaps Gu Wangzhou’s confession hadn’t been heard, or Ruan Chen had woken up and projected his anger at the Sheng family onto Gu.
Sheng Zhiyu set down his teacup. “Understood.”
After confirming Gu Wangzhou had no schedule today, he ordered a bouquet of flowers and set off for the Gu residence.
After ringing the doorbell and waiting for a long time, Gu Wangzhou finally opened the door. The man’s appearance was unchanged, but his eyes held a new, dark gloom.
He looked at the person before him, his gaze incredibly light. “Why are you here?”
Sheng Zhiyu lowered his eyes, his grip on the flowers tightening slightly. After hesitating for a long while, he whispered, “I came to make up.”
In the past, whenever they fought, it was always Sheng Zhiyu who bowed his head first—apology gifts, opportunities to reconcile, and soft-voiced apologies.
Gu Wangzhou narrowed his eyes. Since the day he dropped Sheng Zhiyu off and found that cufflink, he had been plagued by dreams. Those dreams were malicious, constantly whispering that Sheng Zhiyu was no longer the gentle White Moonlight in his memory, but someone with a different motive, someone unrecognizable.
He would wake up feeling it was absurd, thinking it was just his subconscious fear of losing Sheng Zhiyu. But reality was beginning to overlap with the dreams.
“Fine.” Gu Wangzhou reached out to the bouquet in Sheng Zhiyu’s arms, his thumb brushing against a petal. “Even if you hadn’t come, I was going to find you.”
Sheng Zhiyu handed him the flowers. “…My mother has a friend who opened a hot spring resort. With spring approaching, I wanted to ask if you’d like to go on a vacation.”
Gu Wangzhou looked at him for a moment and asked softly, “When?”
Sheng Zhiyu tested the waters: “Now?”
The hot spring resort was in the same city, only a forty-minute drive away. Located on a quiet mountainside, the scenery was beautiful, with Southeast Asian-style architecture.
But Sheng Zhiyu’s mind was elsewhere.
Ruan Chen, trying to enter the modeling world without Gu Wangzhou’s protection, had been targeted by a corrupt boss. Before he could even shoot a cover, he was dragged here to entertain guests.
【No matter how cold the war is between Gu Wangzhou and him, one look at Ruan Chen’s soaked bathrobe, tearful eyes, and pitiable state will surely change Gu’s mind.】
Due to many guests that night, only one king-sized bed was left.
Gu Wangzhou tilted his head slightly. Sheng Zhiyu replied calmly, “That’s fine.”
Then, as if realizing his response was too forward, he turned back. “I… I’ll sleep on the floor tonight.”
Sheng Zhiyu, of course, didn’t need to sleep on the floor because he wouldn’t be the one sleeping in this room tonight; Ruan Chen and Gu Wangzhou would.
Gu Wangzhou took in his temporary fluster and his slightly reddened cheeks. “As you wish.”
In the room, Sheng Zhiyu took his new clothes toward the bathroom. “I’ll go change first.”
Gu Wangzhou nodded, standing still as he watched the frosted glass door close. The dim foyer light cast his silhouette in shadow, while the light reflecting off the glass created a mist-like veil, blurring Sheng Zhiyu’s silhouette inside.
Gu Wangzhou knew Sheng Zhiyu had a motive for coming to reconcile. Yet, looking at that face and those flowers, he felt an indescribable throb in his heart.
This feeling whether sweet or during a quarrel never happened when he was with Ruan Chen.
…Was it because Ruan Chen was a “low-quality substitute”?
The door opened. Sheng Zhiyu looked surprised for a moment. “Why are you still standing here?”
“Thinking about things.” Gu Wangzhou pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took a puff. The drifting smoke reached Sheng Zhiyu. “You don’t seem to mind much about what happened the other day.”
The smile on Sheng Zhiyu’s face slowly faded. “Because I was the one who chose to leave.”
The smoke clouded his vision. Sheng Zhiyu squinted, only to be suddenly grabbed by the chin by a cold hand. Gu Wangzhou’s face pressed down on him with immense force.
“Don’t be so nervous,” Gu Wangzhou whispered with a low laugh. “You’re stiff.”
Sheng Zhiyu’s eyes turned three degrees colder, hidden behind his lashes. Gu Wangzhou’s fingers traced from his jaw down to his neck—the touch was a caress, but the posture was a chokehold.
It was an intimate gesture, yet it felt like being strangled by a cold-blooded animal.
“Let’s start over, hmm?”
Perhaps out of some inherent malice, Gu Wangzhou wanted to see panic or fear on this face. This feeling of submission eased a certain sense of losing control deep within him.
But Sheng Zhiyu simply smiled at him. “Sure.”
Gu Wangzhou’s pupils trembled. It was a beautiful, vivid smile, yet it felt like his heart was being pricked with poison. It was a sense of powerlessness as if everything he touched was a “hypocrisy” carefully woven by Sheng Zhiyu.
Yet this dangerous, whirlpool-like sensation made him unable to pull away. Gu Wangzhou let go and stepped into the dressing room, hiding his disarray.
Lin Weiyu’s bad feeling intensified: 【Wait, shouldn’t Gu Wangzhou be pining for Ruan Chen? Why did he look at you just now like he absolutely can’t live without you?】
Sheng Zhiyu didn’t speak. After changing, the two went downstairs.
While Sheng Zhiyu was away taking a “scripted” phone call from his mother, Gu Wangzhou “accidentally” ran into Ruan Chen being harassed by several greasy bosses.
By the time Sheng Zhiyu returned, Gu Wangzhou was already exuding a suppressed fury. He had clearly seen Ruan Chen in a bind.
Sheng Zhiyu pretended not to notice. “It’s getting cold. Let’s soak in the spring to warm up.”
Gu Wangzhou’s eyes fell on Sheng Zhiyu’s white neck, then stopped at the collar of his bathrobe. “Okay.”
They entered the pool. The white mist created an ambiguous atmosphere, but it only made Gu Wangzhou look gloomier.
Sheng Zhiyu sat at the edge, his porcelain-white legs dipping into the water. Gu Wangzhou looked at him, his “prided self-control” nearly dissolving. This was the first time he had seen Sheng Zhiyu’s body.
“Your hand shouldn’t touch the water yet.” Gu Wangzhou reached out.
Sheng Zhiyu smiled and placed his hand on Gu’s. “Thanks.”
“We used to soak in springs like this together,” Sheng Zhiyu said suddenly. “Was it when we were six or seven?”
“Seven,” Gu Wangzhou whispered.
As the conversation died down, Sheng Zhiyu’s face turned red from the heat, and his eyes grew unfocused. “I’m… a bit dizzy. I think I’ll go get some water.”
Gu Wangzhou helped him to a bench. “Wait for me here.”
“Okay.”
The moment Gu Wangzhou left, Sheng Zhiyu’s eyes instantly cleared.
【Ruan Chen was drugged by that greasy boss and then soaked in the hot spring. He’s in a very clingy state now. Gu Wangzhou will take him back to the room once he finds him.】
Sure enough, a waiter approached Sheng Zhiyu. “Mr. Sheng? Mr. Gu said he has some business and asked me to look after you.”
Sheng Zhiyu smiled. “No need. I’ll just get some fresh air.”
Sheng Zhiyu picked up a small tea tray from a nearby table. Just then, a drunk, stinking man grabbed his hand. “Xiao… Xiao Chen, just come with me. Forget the inner pages, you’ll have the cover of the magazine…”
Sheng Zhiyu looked back coldly, grabbing the old man by the collar. “Look closely at who I am before you talk drunk.”
The old man froze, stunned by the face before him. Then he gripped Sheng Zhiyu’s hand even tighter. “You… you’re even prettier than Ruan Chen. I want you!”
Before he could finish, he groaned in pain. Qi Fan had appeared, grabbing the man’s shoulder with enough force to turn his face pale and sober him up instantly.
“Grabbing people in public? Where did this bandit come from?” Qi Fan asked lowly. The man apologized frantically and fled.
Qi Fan turned back to Sheng Zhiyu. “Do you usually just wait around like this during plot points?”
Sheng Zhiyu rubbed his wrist. “Usually not.”
Qi Fan pulled a room card from his pocket. “This is a room I prepared so I wouldn’t have to wait. That drunkard is supposed to harass my ‘canary’ (Ruan Chen) later. If you don’t leave, you’ll be in the way of me being a ‘scumbag’.”
In the original plot, Gu Wangzhou saves Ruan Chen (Hero saves Beauty), while Qi Fan does the opposite. He ignores Ruan Chen’s danger to flirt with others, allowing the “True Protagonist Gong” to save the day and spark “love at first sight.”
Sheng Zhiyu’s expression was complex. “So, you’re out here picking people up?”
Qi Fan laughed lightly. “Do you think I came here specifically to find you?”
Sheng Zhiyu turned and stepped into the elevator without a word.
The room card was for 7086. When the elevator doors opened, Sheng Zhiyu froze. Gu Wangzhou who was supposed to be with Ruan Chen was standing right there.
His face was cold and ferocious. “Our room is on the 8th floor. Why are you getting off on the 7th?”
“Pressed the wrong button,” Sheng Zhiyu said casually.
Gu Wangzhou dragged him out by the wrist, snatched the room card from his pocket, and saw the number. He walked to the door, swiped the card, and threw Sheng Zhiyu onto the bed.
The weeks of suspicion had finally culminated in “evidence.” But this evidence didn’t bring relief; it brought intense jealousy.
“Pretending to like me while not caring about Ruan Chen, pretending to reconcile while sending Ruan Chen to my room, pretending to be pure while hooking up with Qi Fan?” Gu Wangzhou roared.
He couldn’t explain why, when he saw the drugged, pitiable Ruan Chen, his mind was filled only with Sheng Zhiyu. His obsession had become a twisted possessiveness.
He pressed down on Sheng Zhiyu with a cold sneer. “Playing me is fun, isn’t it?”
Suddenly, a sharp pain hit his neck. Sheng Zhiyu was holding a broken piece of the tea tray, which had sliced Gu’s skin.
Sheng Zhiyu’s dark eyes curved. “So, you saw through it.”
“You and Qi Fan teamed up to investigate me, to force me?” Gu Wangzhou didn’t back down. “So, you only pretended to like me?”
Sheng Zhiyu sat up, pressing the sharp edge closer to Gu’s face. “You find betrayal so unacceptable? Then why didn’t I see you feeling guilty for betraying that pure love from ten years ago?”
He sliced a deep gash into Gu Wangzhou’s arm. “You don’t love me that much. You just want me to love the version of you that was pathetic and humble ten years ago.”
As the tension reached a boiling point, Sheng Zhiyu smiled. “In the end, even you loathe yourself. Gu Wangzhou, you’re pathetic.”
“Shut up!” Gu Wangzhou grabbed the shard with his bare hand, blood dripping everywhere.
Beep—
The door opened. Qi Fan grabbed Gu Wangzhou by the collar and hurled him into the wall.
Gu Wangzhou looked at the two of them. Why, even after their “relationship” was exposed, did they look like bystanders? They didn’t show him disdain or mockery; they were simply indifferent.
Qi Fan looked at Sheng Zhiyu. Sheng Zhiyu was sitting on the bed in a loose bathrobe. As he stood up, the belt loosened, and the robe slipped from his shoulder.
On the “White Moonlight’s” snow-white back were several cherry-blossom-colored hickey marks. They coiled down his shoulder like vines, strangling the only “light” left in Gu Wangzhou’s heart.
The moon he never possessed would never be his.
【WARNING—Protagonist’s emotions out of control. Logic shattered. Please correct immediately…】
【Correction failed. Data error… Instance collapsing…】
【MISSION FAILED.】
Sheng Zhiyu woke up in the Bureau’s infirmary.
“Xiao Yu is awake!” Lin Weiyu’s noisy voice rang out.
Chu Song, the Section Chief, patted his head. “Don’t think too much about it. This instance was high difficulty; no one has ever finished it successfully.”
However, Lin Weiyu whispered the real reason for the chief’s happiness: “Qi Fan failed too. And while your failure was due to the instance’s difficulty, his was marked as ‘Abnormal Performance’ and ‘Abuse of Authority’.”
Sheng Zhiyu went home to his apartment, feeling a deep weariness. He looked at a photo of his grandfather and his older brother. “Brother, I’m back.”
A day later, he received a summons to the Minister’s office on the 11th floor.
At the elevator, he ran into Qi Fan. The man was dressed in a white jacket and black pants, looking strangely serious.
“What a coincidence,” Qi Fan said, narrowing his eyes. “Since we’re out of the instance, does what you said back then still count?”
Sheng Zhiyu: “…What?”
“About you ‘sponsoring’ (keeping) me.”
Sheng Zhiyu: “?”