TF01 87

Because he hadn’t spent much time with his family growing up, Shi Yi rarely talked to his parents about his private life. The only one he really communicated with was his uncle, Chen Cheng.

Back during the Weisai incident, the first person he went to was also his uncle, not his father.

Technically, they were a generation apart, and not even of the same surname, but emotionally, they were more like brothers. Shi Yi wouldn’t bring things to his parents unless he was absolutely certain. Whenever he needed to test the waters or get a read on how things might land, he’d always go to Chen Cheng first.

So when that message came through, Shi Yi more or less knew what it was about.

They met in a private room at a Western restaurant Shi Yi often visited. It wasn’t even mealtime, but they gave him the room anyway. He waited a while before his uncle arrived, and just as expected, his expression didn’t look good.

Chen Cheng tossed his coat onto the sofa and frowned. “Do you know why I called you?”

Shi Yi took a sip of coffee. “I can guess.”

“So you knew.” His uncle let out a cold laugh. “And still went through with it?”

It wasn’t the most accurate wording, but at the moment, he couldn’t think of a better way to put it. Chen Cheng was furious. He stared straight at Shi Yi. “I thought you were finally ready to settle down after messing around for so long. I figured maybe spending New Year at home had made you realize something. But then I did some digging into your recent escapades, and the result, honestly, left me speechless.”

At first, he had thought it had to be a mistake.

Even if Shi Yi was living with Ying Ming, that could just mean they were close friends. Shi Yi had always had people orbiting around him, plenty of flattering hangers-on from childhood to now. Chen Cheng hadn’t thought too much of it, until he found out Shi Yi had spent the New Year at Ying Ming’s house and then didn’t leave for two whole days. After that, it was impossible to keep turning a blind eye.

He had someone look into it, and they even came back with photos of the two of them being close.

Chen Cheng yanked his tie loose. “Tell me what the hell you’re thinking.”

Shi Yi was the only nephew in the family. Everyone in the Shi household treated him like he was made of gold. If his parents ever found out, there would be hell to pay.

Seeing his uncle, who had always gone easy on him since he was a kid looking this grim, Shi Yi frowned slightly. Still, his tone stayed calm. He sat in silence for a while before finally speaking.

“If you already know, then there’s not much else for me to say. But you were right about one thing. I’m serious.”

“Serious?”

Chen Cheng gave a short, bitter laugh. “You’re serious? With a man? Then what about all those girlfriends before? Were they just for us to see, or were you fooling yourself too?”

This was his own nephew. He knew exactly what kind of person Shi Yi was. If Shi Yi had really been gay all along, there was no way he wouldn’t have noticed over the years. And now suddenly, just like that, he was seriously involved with a man? What was this, reincarnation?

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. Chen Cheng slammed the table. “Shi Yi, what the hell is wrong with you? Did you hit your head or get brain damage last time? Do you have any idea what would happen if your parents heard you say that?”

Forget his parents, Chen Cheng himself couldn’t accept it.

It wasn’t even about being against homosexuality. He had been around long enough to meet every kind of person out there, worked with them, done business with them, fought with them. If it were anyone else, he might have just raised a brow and pretended he didn’t know. But this was happening in his own family, and it felt fucking unreal.

Shi Yi stayed silent, saying nothing.

Chen Cheng glared. “Don’t fucking play dumb right now. Speak.”

It was the first time he had ever spoken to Shi Yi this harshly.

The fire burning in his chest hadn’t died down at all. If anything, it had only grown worse.

Shi Yi looked up at him. After a long pause, he said quietly, “Uncle, I really am serious.”

His expression was sincere. But the more Chen Cheng looked at him, the darker his own expression became.

Nearly three full minutes passed before Chen Cheng finally started to cool down. He leaned back into the sofa, still staring at Shi Yi, as if trying to gauge just how far this so-called seriousness actually went. Shi Yi let him look, unmoving.

The silence stretched thick between them, the pressure in the room heavy enough to choke.

Finally, Chen Cheng tapped the rim of his coffee cup with his finger and spoke, his tone quiet.

“Do you want to hear my opinion?”

He looked directly at Shi Yi.

Shi Yi didn’t respond.

“Break up.”

Chen Cheng picked up his coffee, took a sip of the now lukewarm liquid, and set the cup down slowly. “Break up with that Ying Ming. Immediately.”

Shi Yi wasn’t surprised to hear it, but his expression still stiffened. “That’s not going to happen.”

“There’s no such thing as impossible,” Chen Cheng said, staring straight at him. “If you won’t end it yourself, I have ways to make sure it ends. And when that happens, you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

People from the Shi family had their own way of issuing threats. Chen Cheng had been brought up by Shi Yi’s father personally and had received just as much investment and expectation as Shi Yi himself. In some ways, Chen Cheng even resembled the Shi family more than Shi Yi did. And if he was speaking like this now, it meant he had already made up his mind.

“If this was just a phase, I might not press you right away. But if you’re serious about him, then you need to walk away. You know how long your parents have been worrying about your eyes. You’re over twenty years old. You still don’t know how to weigh consequences? If they find out you’re risking permanent damage to your vision for someone like Ying Ming, do you think your mother will ever stop crying about it at home?”

No one had ever expected it would come to something like this.

Compared to other rich kids from similar backgrounds, Shi Yi had always been considered the easy one. While other parents were pulling strings just to send their failing sons abroad for a diploma, Shi Yi had already figured out what major he wanted and what kind of future he planned to build.

Even if parents often voice all kinds of complaints about their children, deep down, they always believe their own kid is better than everyone else’s.

Especially someone like Shi Yi’s father, who had always been a man of enormous pride.

If he ever found out that Shi Yi not only liked a man, but was actually living with him, no one could predict how explosive the fallout would be.

The more Chen Cheng thought about it, the more irritated he became. That slow-burning fire of anger only grew hotter. “You’ve always liked making your own decisions. Your parents let you get away with it because they trust you. Shi Yi, that trust is not a license to do whatever the hell you want. You had better clean this up yourself. Otherwise, forget your father. I, myself, won’t let you off.”

He meant every word.

In this city, Chen Cheng couldn’t cover the sky with one hand, but if he wanted to ruin a third-rate celebrity in the entertainment industry, it wouldn’t take much effort. That included Ying Ming. It even included Shi Yi’s own company. If he decided to teach his nephew a lesson, there were plenty of ways to do it.

No one wanted to go after their own family, but his anger had reached a breaking point. He couldn’t understand how someone like Shi Yi, who had always seemed so rational, could suddenly throw himself into something like this. That was exactly why, when he first got the investigation report, he had felt such deep unease. And now, watching his nephew’s reaction firsthand, everything he feared was confirmed.

Shi Yi wasn’t just playing around. He was serious.

Chen Cheng couldn’t sit still anymore. He stood up abruptly, grabbed his coat, and shot Shi Yi a look full of fury. “I’ve said what I came to say. I won’t tell your parents for now. You know exactly what kind of situation you’re in. I’m warning you. if I could get photos of you and Ying Ming, other people can too. If this blows up and turns into a scandal, don’t expect anyone to clean up your mess. You’ll be on your own.”

Those words made Shi Yi’s expression grow even darker. His fingers tightened around the coffee cup as he watched Chen Cheng walk to the door, then turn around one last time.

“And stop holing yourself up in that damn warehouse all day. Go home once in a while. Your parents still think you’re too busy with work to call or drop by. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Chen Cheng ended it with a curse, then slammed the door and left.

Shi Yi didn’t move. Only when he heard the sound of footsteps fading down the stairs did he finally let out the breath he had been holding in his chest the entire time.

He had known the conversation wouldn’t go smoothly, but he hadn’t expected his uncle to be that furious. And thinking about it from another angle, if Chen Cheng was already this angry, what would his parents be like if they found out? He honestly couldn’t imagine it.

He ran a hand through his hair. For the first time, the future felt crushingly heavy.

Shi Yi didn’t tell Ying Ming anything about the conversation.

He hadn’t figured out how he wanted to handle it. The facts were out now, and there was no point pretending otherwise. He had already made it clear he wasn’t going to break up, so the only thing left to consider was how to make them accept it.

That was the only thing that mattered now.

But he had no idea where to begin.

Ying Ming had said the remaining scenes would only take three days to shoot, but in the end it took over a week to wrap. During that time, Shi Yi didn’t complain, didn’t call to rush him, and didn’t throw any tantrums. Ou Yang had been dragging him along to various company events anyway, and Shi Yi came home drunk most nights.

Even Smoke Ring seemed to pick up on his mood. The cat kept its distance and didn’t come near him once.

The warehouse felt huge and hollow. Shi Yi lay on the sofa, staring at the ceiling lights, lost in a haze.

When Ying Ming finally came back, the first thing he told Shi Yi was something unexpected.

Dong Xiao had returned to China, and he wanted to work with Ying Ming on a new film.

Shi Yi didn’t react right away. “You mean, he wants to co-star with you again?”

“No.”

Ying Ming shook his head, his expression subtly lit with a trace of anticipation. “We’re planning to collaborate as the core creators of the film. We’ll be producing and directing it ourselves. We want to make something that’s truly ours, in every sense.”

His work with Si Ji this time had also been laying the groundwork for this project.

The funding had more or less been secured. If everything went smoothly, filming could start in under two months.

This time, Shi Yi finally understood. He raised an eyebrow, a little surprised. “So you’re planning to move behind the scenes?”

“It’s just a chance to try something new,” Ying Ming said with a smile. “What actor doesn’t want to try directing at least once?”