TF01 108

Ying Ming had really drunk too much that night. Even after the banquet ended and Shi Yi took him home, he never fully regained his senses.

He had no memory of how they left the hotel, what Shi Yi said to him, or what he said to Shi Yi. All he remembered was that once they got home, they had another fight. He couldn’t piece together the details, but it was likely just another emotional outburst. He knew exactly how much anger had been bottled up inside him lately, and now that he had a chance to let it out, he certainly wasn’t going to hold back.

As for how it ended… one look at the complete mess of the room was enough to give him a rough idea.

When he woke up, Shi Yi was already gone.

There was a note left for him on the table, saying that Shi Yi would do his best to follow through on what he had promised the day before.

Ying Ming stared at the note for a long time, trying and failing to recall what exactly that promise had been. Judging by Shi Yi’s tone, it probably wasn’t anything too serious. The hangover was unbearable, and for a moment he debated whether to call and ask. In the end, he just glared at his phone for a while before tossing it aside.

Yesterday’s encounter had been the wrong time, the wrong place.

Now that the initial frustration and discomfort had passed, what he really wanted was to have a proper talk with Shi Yi.

One way or another, they couldn’t keep dragging things out like this. For the sake of both of their families, and for themselves, they needed to give each other a real answer. But the right moment never seemed to come. He knew Shi Yi’s family situation was a tangled mess that wouldn’t be sorted out easily. It would take time. As for his own side, so far he had only made two calls to explain the current state of things. It was clear from their tone that his parents were far from satisfied. They were still waiting for him to come back and give a proper explanation. But he had too many things going on around him to break away just yet.

Of course, that was just an excuse.

In truth, he simply wasn’t ready to face the storm waiting at home. Because before that, he needed to sort out whatever was going on between him and Shi Yi.

Unfortunately, the more he wanted to fix things, the more they stalled. And after all this time, they still hadn’t reached any kind of real resolution.

After that day, Ying Ming began attending more of those social gatherings with Dong Xiao.

The film approval was still stuck in limbo. Although they had met with plenty of people, very few actually had the power to help. That was just how this industry worked. Whether you made the effort was up to you, but whether it worked out or not was up to fate.

Many assumed that after everything that had happened, Ying Ming would try to avoid appearing in public. After all, no matter how you looked at it, the scandal had been a crushing blow for an actor. The entertainment industry might have long grown numb to all kinds of bizarre romantic entanglements, but it remained especially sensitive when it came to exposure. People could choose to live however they wanted behind closed doors, but making everything public was still taboo.

As Dong Xiao put it, it was a question of whether or not one intended to uphold appearances. But regardless of intention, those were the rules, and no one was free to defy them.

Naturally, Ying Ming showing up so frequently caught a lot of attention. Even some old acquaintances who had almost forgotten him began to realize he was still around. The traditional media outlets remained cautious, but some newer ones even reached out with interview requests. It was obvious what they wanted to ask about was his love life.

Ying Ming turned down every single one of them.

Kou Jing had hinted that taking a few interviews might actually help his case, but Ying Ming stood firm.

Almost a month had gone by in this tug-of-war when one day Dong Xiao called him out of the blue. His tone was strange.

“The film… might be moving forward.”

It should have been good news, but the way Dong Xiao said it felt off. Ying Ming frowned. “Is there a problem?”

“Not exactly a problem…”

Dong Xiao let out a faint snort. “The person who contacted me told me, in a roundabout way, that the reason this thing might go through is because someone stepped in.”

They had been working nonstop on this for weeks, so logically speaking, Dong Xiao shouldn’t have been so surprised.

What made his reaction so odd was who that person turned out to be.

Ying Ming responded quickly. “Shi Yi?”

“You could say that…”

The line went silent for a moment before Dong Xiao finally gave in. “It was Chen Cheng.”

Ying Ming’s brows lifted. He instinctively turned to glance out the window.

The sun was bright and the sky clear, yet there was a faint gloom in the air that lent an eerie edge to the day.

Thanks to Chen Cheng’s intervention, the film’s approval process went through quickly. Ying Ming and Dong Xiao discussed it and decided to make the launch ceremony as high-profile as possible. It would help build momentum and also serve as a chance to thank those who had helped, directly or indirectly. In this industry, managing personal relationships was something no one could avoid. Regardless of who ultimately pulled the strings behind the scenes, proper gratitude had to be shown.

They invited Chen Cheng, but he did not attend.

Ying Ming hesitated over whether to appear himself, but in the end, he took Dong Xiao’s advice. “As the director, it wouldn’t look good if you didn’t show up, but try to avoid dealing with the press.”

That was easy to say, but in reality, escaping the media’s grip was no simple task.

Even with Dong Xiao and Si Ji doing their best to shield him, there were still reporters who stubbornly pressed in with questions.

“There were photos of you and Shi Yi circulating online. Do you have any official response?”

“Your scenes were completely cut from the recent film. Is it true you’ve been blacklisted?”

“What exactly is your relationship with Shi Yi?”

The questions were nothing new, but hearing them asked to his face still irritated Ying Ming.

Especially when several microphones were practically shoved into his face, and someone nearby loudly asked, “Ying Ming, don’t you think you owe the public an explanation about your sexual orientation?”

His eyes narrowed. “As an actor, my job is to fulfill every role I sign on for. It does not include using my personal life as a form of entertainment.”

It was Ying Ming’s first public statement. Instantly, the reporters around him surged like a wave, and security on-site struggled to maintain control.

Dong Xiao and Si Ji were both caught off guard. They hadn’t even figured out how to de-escalate the situation when a voice from the crowd suddenly cried out, “Shi Yi’s here!”

Every reporter in attendance felt like they’d struck gold.

Only after the crowd parted a little did Ying Ming spot Shi Yi, who had just entered and was now surrounded by flashing cameras. His expression gave nothing away. He had changed glasses and hadn’t noticed Ying Ming in the commotion. Security staff hurried over to clear a path so he could move into the venue.

Dong Xiao went over to greet him. “Quite the honored guest today.”

Shi Yi smiled. “Congratulations on the comeback.”

The storm of flashing cameras made both of them flinch slightly. Shi Yi turned his head to the side, and in that moment, his gaze swept toward Ying Ming standing in the distance.

Their eyes met, and Ying Ming’s carried a mix of surprise and suspicion.

This was not the first time the two of them had appeared together at a public event, but it was the first time they drew this much attention. Or rather, no one had ever imagined such a pairing before. Now that people were seeing with their own eyes Shi Yi walking toward Ying Ming, many found it difficult to process.

Later, when Kou Jing brought up the moment to Ying Ming, the word he used was “dreamlike.”

The footage was broadcast repeatedly by countless media outlets, presented from various angles and accompanied by an overwhelming array of commentary, far too much to keep track of.

Ying Ming watched as Shi Yi approached and gave his arm a light pat. “Congratulations.”

The word was spoken clearly and calmly.

It was as if all the frenzied cameras and reporters around them meant nothing to him. Once he finished speaking, Ying Ming politely replied, “Thank you.”

Their brief exchange was soon interrupted by the surrounding crowd. One bold reporter stepped forward to stop Shi Yi and asked, “Young Master Shi, what brings you to the launch ceremony today?”

Shi Yi lifted his brows. “The director and the producer of this film are both good friends of mine.”

“Are you referring to Ying Ming when you say ‘friend’?”

Shi Yi smiled in front of the cameras. “Producer Dong Xiao is a friend of mine as well.”

“But the friendship you have with him isn’t quite the same, is it?”

The pointed tone dragged Ying Ming into the spotlight as well. He frowned slightly, while Shi Yi responded smoothly, “It certainly isn’t the same to you.”

Someone asked the two of them to pose for a photo together. Shi Yi politely declined, saying that he was not the star of the event. Just then, the host took the stage and the lights dimmed accordingly. Seizing the moment, Ying Ming and Shi Yi quietly slipped out of the crowd.

At the edge of the main hall, there was a side door designated as an emergency exit. Shi Yi exited without drawing attention, and not long after, Ying Ming followed.

With no lights in the hallway, they could only make out each other’s outlines in the dark. Shi Yi leaned against the wall, a cigarette lit between his fingers.

Ying Ming did not waste any time and went straight to the point. “Why are you here?”

“Not welcome?”

“On behalf of every reporter in the room, allow me to thank you.”

The biting sarcasm was pure Ying Ming. Shi Yi, half hidden in shadow, glanced at the side of his face. Behind his glasses, his gaze briefly flickered with something complicated. “I heard from Kou Jing that you’d be attending today.”

He had come because Ying Ming was here. It was that simple.

Ever since everything happened, they had both done their best to avoid each other. From the early days of agony to the calm that followed, Shi Yi had imagined countless scenarios for what the future between them might look like. Some were terrible beyond belief, others so idealized they felt fake.

But none of that mattered now that they were face to face.

He took a drag from his cigarette, eyes on the man across from him. Even though the darkness made it hard to read his expression, that familiar face was burned so vividly into his mind that there was no room for doubt. In the past, he had always thought Ying Ming understood him far better than he could ever understand Ying Ming. It was only after these weeks of relentless self-reflection that he realized he might have known this man more deeply than he had imagined.

“That night, when you were drunk, you spent hours cursing me out. Do you remember?”

Shi Yi’s voice was low, tinged with a teasing undertone.

Ying Ming frowned but said nothing. Before he could respond, Shi Yi leaned in and murmured by his ear, “You said if I had any guts at all, I’d stand by your side in front of everyone.”

Shi Yi’s eyes shone in the dark. Ying Ming looked at him, then snatched the cigarette from his mouth and took a few drags. “Once this is over, let’s go somewhere and talk.”

“All right.”

The acrid scent of smoke hung between them. Pale moonlight spilled through the window, casting a cold sheen that wrapped around their bodies. On the wall behind them, their shadows stretched and fused into one.

Indistinguishable from one another.