TF01 38

Shi Yi dragged Wang Le out, not even bothering to go home, and hauled him straight to a bar for drinks.

Wang Le had no idea what had triggered this sudden outburst. Even after watching Shi Yi down a drink, he was still confused and muttered, slightly dissatisfied, “Why did you pull me out? I still had things to say to Yingming—”

He really should have kept his mouth shut because the moment he said that, Shi Yi’s anger flared up even more.

“I swear, can’t you do something serious for once? Over New Year’s, Uncle Wang was telling me he had no idea what to do with you. You graduated years ago, and you’ve spent all this time just wandering around aimlessly. And to top it off, you even came out to your family? Wang Le, has your brain turned to mush? Can you even think straight anymore?”

Shi Yi had been holding back these words for a long time. Today’s outburst might seem sudden, but sooner or later, it was bound to happen. Now that he had started, he couldn’t stop. Turning to face Wang Le, he went on, “Your family spoils you. They’ve let you do whatever you want since you were a kid. But come on, you’re an adult now. Can’t you at least try to do something proper? Spending all your time hanging around the film crew for a man who doesn’t even like you. Are you out of your mind?”

Wang Le frowned. “I’m not doing this for Wang Yiqi.”

“I don’t care who it’s for!”

Shi Yi tipped his head back and drained his drink, slamming the empty glass onto the bar. “Either way, you’re not going back to that crew. If you do, I’m telling your dad to send you overseas for school.”

“Why?!” Wang Le grew anxious. “It’s not like I’m bothering you.”

“I just can’t stand watching you like this.”

“You can’t stand it?” Wang Le’s voice suddenly rose. He looked completely baffled. “Ayi, what the hell is wrong with you?”

Before Shi Yi could answer, a voice behind him chimed in, dripping with mockery.

“Well, well, who’s making such a racket? Oh, turns out it’s the great Young Master Shi…”

The tone was thick with sarcasm, the kind that immediately put people on edge. Shi Yi frowned and turned around, vaguely recognizing the guy but unable to recall where he had seen him before.

Already in a bad mood, he didn’t bother being polite. “Who the hell are you?”

That one question made the other guy’s expression stiffen.

Two men stood behind him, looking like typical hangers-on. Seeing Shi Yi’s attitude, they quickly stepped forward. “Shi Yi, you’re really something, huh? Don’t even recognize Master Zhao?”

Master Zhao?

Shi Yi nearly laughed. A punk like this calling himself ‘Master’? He tilted his head, giving the newcomer a slow once-over before curling his lips into a smirk.

“This city’s really something. Any random stray can step out and call themselves ‘Master’ these days. Sorry, guess I’ve been living under a rock. I have no clue which gutter you crawled out of.”

The guy’s face finally darkened. “Zhao Zicong.”

The three syllables were spoken with confidence, but Shi Yi still didn’t recognize him at first. He even frowned and hesitated for a moment before finally digging up a memory from the back of his mind. This was the rich kid who had been all over the gossip pages for his rumored relationship with Liu Li.

It would have been better if he hadn’t remembered. Now that he did, his attitude worsened. He pushed his empty glass toward the bartender without even sparing Zhao Zicong a glance and replied impatiently, “What do you want?”

The lackey who had just called him “Master Zhao” was the first to explode. “What the fuck! Shi Yi, you’re way too arrogant.”

The way he yelled and carried on was just like those lackeys in TV dramas who cried and screamed over everything.

Shi Yi turned to glance at him. “You filming a drama? I don’t have time for this. If you’ve got something to say, say it. If you need to fart, just let it out.”

Zhao Zicong stared at him, his eyes full of hostility. But strangely, instead of making a scene, he just let out a cold laugh. “Since Young Master Shi is too busy to deal with us, there’s no need to waste our time here.”

With that, he casually motioned to his lackeys and sat down at a nearby table, just a short distance from Shi Yi and Wang Le.

Talk about bad luck.

Shi Yi was already fuming and had nowhere to vent, only to run into Zhao Zicong, someone he couldn’t stand no matter how he looked at him. It felt like everything today was working against him.

That morning, Wang Le had called him, asking for help getting two tickets. When Shi Yi offhandedly asked what they were for, Wang Le said it was because Ying Ming wanted to see the show.

Shi Yi’s first reaction was, if Ying Ming wanted to see it, why didn’t he just ask directly? Why go through Wang Le?

That was just his instinctive response. But after thinking it over, he figured Ying Ming probably didn’t know about this at all.

For reasons he couldn’t quite explain, when Wang Le later said he was coming to pick up the tickets for Ying Ming, Shi Yi decided to come along. After all, that night at Ying Ming’s place had been a mess, and they hadn’t met up since. As friends, it had been a while.

In Shi Yi’s mind, he had never been the type to feel the need to check in with a friend after just a few days apart, let alone insist on meeting up for a meal or a chat.

To put it nicely, he found that kind of thing pretentious. To put it bluntly, it felt a bit sissy.

For two grown men, unless they were drinking to drown their sorrows, there really wasn’t much point in sitting around chatting about this and that.

But for some reason, it was different with Ying Ming.

He just liked being around him.

Even if they didn’t talk much, just drinking together was enough to make him feel at ease.

In a city like this, finding a friend who truly shared your wavelength wasn’t easy. Shi Yi considered himself lucky. His friendship with Ying Ming felt like fate. Maybe a bit strange and unexpected, but something he wanted to cherish.

The last thing he expected was to walk onto the set that day and see that.

He couldn’t even describe how he felt in that moment. All he knew was that he had the overwhelming urge to punch someone.

Now, sitting here drinking, his mind was still stuck on the absurdity of some dumbass director deciding to make a gay movie, and of all people, casting Ying Ming. As if filming those scenes wasn’t enough, they had to keep it going off-camera too.

What kind of sick joke was that?

Frustrated, he downed another couple of drinks. His expression was so dark that Wang Le, sitting beside him, didn’t dare say a word. The bar was packed, filled with all sorts of people coming and going. With nothing else to do, Wang Le pulled out his phone to send some texts, ignoring Shi Yi as he drank.

But Zhao Zicong, sitting just a table away, wasn’t about to be so quiet.

The bar was already noisy enough that even people sitting close together might not catch what others were saying. But Zhao Zicong made sure every word he spoke was loud enough to carry, making it impossible to ignore.

“You really think people in the entertainment industry are anything special?” he sneered. “Let me tell you, even the biggest celebrities will sleep with you for the right price. Reputation? Who gives a damn about that?”

Right after he finished, someone next to him laughed. “Is Master Zhao talking about his new girlfriend?”

“Hah, don’t flatter her,” Zhao Zicong scoffed. “She’s just a small-time model. As long as she keeps me happy, I might throw her a bone.”

“Oh? So you’re saying you’ve had better?”

“Would an award-winning actress count?”

Zhao Zicong’s words were followed by a burst of laughter, his tone dripping with lecherous contempt. “They act all high and mighty in public, but the moment you say a few sweet words, they fold. Every single one of them is the same. If they’re willing to strip on camera for an entire audience, you really think they’d be shy about it in private?”

“Then why don’t you just tell us who it is, Master Zhao?”

The one who asked was obviously fishing. At this point, even Wang Le could guess who Zhao Zicong was talking about.

Sure enough, the next moment, Zhao Zicong sneered deliberately in Shi Yi’s direction. “Liu Li. Heard of her?”

Almost as soon as those words left his mouth, the glass in Shi Yi’s hand came flying.

It missed Zhao Zicong, but his lackey wasn’t so lucky.

The glass hit him square in the forehead, and blood started trickling down immediately.

A few people nearby gasped at the scene. Wang Le, in complete shock, watched as Shi Yi, someone who had always been able to keep his temper in check, got into a full-on brawl with Zhao Zicong. Chairs and tables went crashing to the floor as people scrambled to get out of the way.

Nobody called the cops.

The bartenders and staff shouted at them to stop, but no one paid them any attention.

Shi Yi had rarely ever gotten into physical fights growing up.

Whenever he was in a bad mood, he had plenty of ways to vent. And if he really wanted to mess with someone, he didn’t need to throw hands himself.

But tonight, Zhao Zicong had walked straight into his line of fire.

Whether he and Liu Li were still together wasn’t even the point. The fact was, they had been together for a while, and there was no way he was going to just sit there and listen to this bastard talk about her like that.

Especially when it was obvious that Zhao Zicong had said it just to provoke him.

If he could let this slide, he wouldn’t be Shi Yi.

Bar fights always had plenty of makeshift weapons within reach.

Shi Yi did not hold back. He grabbed whatever he could and swung hard. He had both the height and the build over a spoiled brat like Zhao Zicong. Even with three against one, aside from taking a few hits, he dominated the fight from start to finish.

Still, he did not walk away unscathed.

Wang Le stood frozen, completely terrified.

He did not even dare to step in and break it up. He just watched as Shi Yi got knocked down, then dragged himself up and sent the other guy to the ground in return. Blow after blow, both of them ended up in a complete mess.

It was not until the guy Shi Yi had smashed with the glass started bleeding even more that someone finally panicked. Grabbing a random onlooker, the man shouted, “Call the cops! Get an ambulance!”

That was when the crowd started moving. Someone hesitantly pulled out their phone.

Wang Le finally snapped out of it. He lunged forward and snatched the phone out of the person’s hand. “Don’t call the cops!”

If their fathers found out they had been fighting like this, they were both doomed.

But his sudden movement startled the person, who instinctively pulled back. The call had already gone through.

Wang Le was so anxious he was close to tears. He turned back to see Shi Yi, completely consumed by the fight, his phone flung to the ground in the chaos.

Wang Le carefully stepped forward and picked it up.

The first number on the screen was Ying Ming.

He did not hesitate. He hit dial.

The call was picked up almost immediately. Since Ying Ming thought it was Shi Yi, his greeting was casual. “Shi Yi, you good?”

Wang Le clutched the phone like a lifeline. His voice was hoarse as he shouted, “Ying Ming, get over here now! Ayi is in trouble!”