ABOES 67: Hype a CP

In that split second, Chi Yunxing’s mind was racing.

He thought of the kiss on set that day, how Duan Zhiyan responded, and the “I got a little too into character” that sounded like both an excuse and a confession. He remembered their wrap day, sitting side by side, and the husky question Duan Zhiyan had asked him.

Chi Yunxing turned his head slightly and saw Duan Zhiyan watching him intently, patiently waiting for his answer.

He couldn’t help but wonder: Why was Duan Zhiyan asking him this? Did he not believe the casual reply he’d given that day? Or… did he want a different answer?

Or perhaps—was this just an excuse for Duan Zhiyan to see him again?

That last thought made Chi Yunxing’s heart skip a beat.

The hallway was quiet. It was so quiet that Chi Yunxing could clearly hear Duan Zhiyan’s soft breathing beside him.

He glanced at Chi Xiwen nearby, then back at Duan Zhiyan.

Maybe Duan Zhiyan hadn’t expected Chi Yunxing to suddenly look at him because in that moment, Chi Yunxing caught a flicker of unguarded emotion in his deep and abyss-like eyes.

Was that… anticipation?

Chi Yunxing’s breath caught.

Duan Zhiyan was looking forward to his answer.

Which meant that answer he had casually given that day hadn’t satisfied him.

He wanted a different response.

Thump, thump, thump.

Chi Yunxing could hear his own rapid heartbeat pounding in his chest.

Why?

He wanted to ask himself and ask Duan Zhiyan even more.

He knew now wasn’t the right time to talk.

Duan Zhiyan wasn’t the only one waiting for his answer, Chi Xiwen was also watching silently.

Although Chi Yunxing had thought through all of this, to Chi Xiwen it had only been a few seconds.

But even those few seconds made Chi Xiwen anxious.

Just as he was about to say something, Chi Yunxing suddenly broke into a brilliant smile.

“Into character?” he echoed. “Zhiyan Ge, are you worried I’ve mistaken you for Xu Li?”

Duan Zhiyan pressed his lips together, neither agreeing nor denying.

Chi Xiwen thought of all of Yunxing’s odd behavior lately. Wasn’t that the case?

Then Yunxing laughed. “Nope. I know perfectly well that the person in front of me is Zhiyan Ge, not Xu Li. Honestly, this was my first time acting, so maybe it was just a lack of experience. I wasn’t really ‘in character’ for very long.”

If he had to count the time he’d actually fallen into character, it was probably only during that first kiss scene when he had to numb himself.

Chi Xiwen was caught off guard by Yunxing’s answer.

Duan Zhiyan’s expression didn’t change much, but if one looked closely, they could see the faint upward curve at the corners of his eyes and lips.

He was happy.

Chi Yunxing had thought it through before answering. So when he saw the subtle smile in Duan Zhiyan’s eyes, his heart beat even faster, and the hand at his side clenched tightly from nervousness.

He hadn’t guessed wrong.

He really hadn’t.

Chi Yunxing glanced at Chi Xiwen. For the first time, he felt a reckless urge to ask him to leave them alone.

Yet before he could speak, Duan Zhiyan smiled at Chi Xiwen and said, “Satisfied now?”

Chi Xiwen looked between the two of them.

Duan Zhiyan’s gaze was open, and Yunxing didn’t avoid looking at him. In fact, there was even a hint of accusation in his eyes.

A wave of guilt suddenly surged in Chi Xiwen’s chest. He quickly said, “Sorry, Yunxing, I wrongly accused you…”

Chi Yunxing sighed inwardly. It wasn’t about being wrong or right—it was about getting in his way…

He snuck another glance at Duan Zhiyan and smiled. “It’s fine, Ge. You were just worried about me.”

Duan Zhiyan was in a good mood today. Surprisingly, he didn’t jab at Chi Xiwen again. The topic passed quickly between the three of them.

Yet only Chi Yunxing and Duan Zhiyan knew that it wasn’t over.

…

Tan Yao and Chi Ling returned soon after.

Seeing that Duan Zhiyan hadn’t left yet, Tan Yao invited him to join them for lunch.

To everyone’s surprise, he politely declined with a smile.

“Hm? Got other plans?” Tan Yao asked curiously.

Chi Yunxing also looked at him, confused.

He hadn’t had a chance to talk to Duan Zhiyan privately yet and he was leaving already?

His fingers curled slightly, knuckles turning pale.

Duan Zhiyan glanced at his hand, then looked away and explained with a smile, “I only got the day off today. I still need to return to set and finish filming. I’m trying to wrap today.”

Chi Yunxing asked, “Weren’t you supposed to wrap tomorrow?”

Duan Zhiyan’s gaze was gentle. “Aren’t you starting school tomorrow?”

Chi Yunxing froze.

Duan Zhiyan added, “I want to take you to campus.”

Chi Xiwen immediately exploded. “The hell you are! I’m taking Yunxing to school tomorrow!” He pulled Yunxing into his arms. “I’m taking him!”

As Chi Yunxing was dragged into his brother’s embrace, realization hit and his heart started racing again, ears burning.

Duan Zhiyan kept his tone calm and smiling. “Then why don’t we ask Yunxing who he wants to take him?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Me!” Chi Xiwen declared. “If you take him, the school gate will be swarmed!”

Tan Yao, rubbing her temples, sighed to Chi Ling, “Here they go again.”

Chi Ling stiffened slightly, his eyes darkening. He opened his mouth, paused, then said quietly, “Let’s head out first.”

Tan Yao nodded, clearly not in the mood to watch this childish fight. She didn’t notice the flicker of emotion in Chi Ling’s eyes.

Chi Yunxing did but before he could think too hard about it, the two men’s bickering snapped him out of it.

“I’m taking Yunxing!”

“Let him choose. Don’t decide for him!”

“I’m his real brother! Can’t I make decisions for him?”

“Chi Xiwen, every person is an individual—”

“I don’t need a damn lecture!”

Chi Yunxing: “…”

He really wanted to say he could go to school on his own, but the moment he opened his mouth, both men shut him down at the same time.

After all the arguing—or rather, Chi Xiwen’s failed attempt to stop it—the final result was that both of them would take him.

…

The next morning, Chi Yunxing woke up to see Duan Zhiyan’s name trending for wrapping his film.

After washing up and going downstairs, he found Duan Zhiyan was already waiting at the breakfast table.

Hearing movement, Duan Zhiyan looked up with a smile. “Yunxing, you’re up?”

“Come eat,” Chi Xiwen waved him over. “We’ll head out after.”

Chi Yunxing smiled and walked over quickly.

Since Chi Ling had work that morning and Tan Yao went with him, only the three of them were home.

Chi Xiwen, likely still salty at Duan Zhiyan, sat far away at the corner of the table.

Chi Yunxing hesitated briefly, then walked over and sat beside Duan Zhiyan.

If Chi Xiwen asked, he would say it was the most convenient spot.

Sure enough, as soon as he sat, Chi Xiwen looked at him with betrayed eyes. “Yunxing, why did you—”

“You’re sitting so far,” Duan Zhiyan cut in smoothly, “How’s Yunxing supposed to reach the food?”

Chi Xiwen paused… Well, fair.

He was mad at Duan Zhiyan, not Yunxing.

So he grabbed his plate and sat down on Yunxing’s other side.

Chi Yunxing: “…”

He had hoped to sneak in a few subtle questions over breakfast. Guess it’s not happening now.

Left with no choice, he sped up his eating.

Which is how the morning turned into a five-person trip—Chi Yunxing, Duan Zhiyan, Chi Xiwen, their driver, and Duan Zhiyan’s assistant.

With Chi Yunxing’s fame rising, Xie Yi had originally planned to accompany him to campus too but hearing that Duan Zhiyan and Chi Xiwen were both going, she immediately relaxed.

With two overprotective maniacs on the job, what could go wrong?

As a third-year student, Yunxing didn’t have to queue for registration. He only needed to attend a short orientation meeting.

With time to spare, they drove first to the villa Chi Ling had bought for him near campus.

Standing in front of the lavishly decorated villa, Chi Yunxing thought to himself, So this is what Dad meant by a “small” house?

Chi Xiwen even frowned and said, “Sorry to have you make do. Dad and I spent a whole month looking, and this was the only place that was somewhat suitable.”

Duan Zhiyan added, “It is a bit small. If it really doesn’t work, you can come live at my place. I have a villa by the riverside—not too far from here.”

Chi Yunxing quickly said, “No, this is perfect!”

Chi Xiwen suddenly asked Duan Zhiyan, “Are you selling that place?”

Duan Zhiyan glanced at him. “I can give it to Yunxing.”

Chi Xiwen actually smiled for once. “Don’t be polite, Yunxing. If he gives it to you, take it.”

“I’m good, really!” Yunxing shook his head. “This one’s great.”

Chi Xiwen had to let it go.

After the villa tour, it was time for the meeting, so they drove to campus.

As soon as the flashy car pulled up, students nearby started whispering.

“What car is that?”

“Limited edition Lambo, last year.”

“Holy shit!”

“Who shows up to class in that kind of car?”

“No idea, probably one of those rich kids.”

They kept speculating.

“Hey, do you think Ye Xinian will come back this term?”

“You mean Chi Yunxing?”

“Yeah. He’s so famous now—if he shows up, the school building’s gonna be packed.”

“True.”

“I haven’t seen him in person. Think we could get an autograph if he comes back?”

Chi Yunxing happened to walk by just then and heard it all. He smiled quietly, didn’t say anything, and picked up his pace.

The meeting was on the sixth floor. He arrived just in time.

The bodyguard Chi Xiwen hired stood outside the classroom door.

Chi Yunxing wore a mask and cap, revealing only his eyes. As he entered, the room fell silent then erupted.

“Ye Xinian!”

These classmates still called him by his old name.

Just as Yunxing was about to speak, a familiar voice called out, “It’s not Ye Xinian anymore, he’s Chi Yunxing now!”

Chi Yunxing looked up and met Zhou Ping’s smiling gaze.

He pulled down his mask and cap. “Yeah. From now on, just call me Chi Yunxing. I changed my name.”

Then he hurried toward his dorm mates.

Everyone was excited to see him, especially those who he had shared a dorm with for two years.

They surrounded him, asking about his entertainment career.

One girl even asked about his relationship with Duan Zhiyan.

Chi Yunxing’s brow twitched.

Before he could answer, Old Wei snapped, “What relationship? They’re just co-stars! You girls need to stop imagining things!”

The girl blushed and apologized. She explained she had stumbled on a CP-edit video of Chi Yunxing and Duan Zhiyan during the break.

Chi Yunxing smiled. “No worries,” He added, “Zhiyan Ge and I are just friends. Our parents know each other, so maybe we seem close.”

The girl’s eyes dimmed, clearly disappointed. “Oh… I see.”

Chi Yunxing smiled faintly.

Yes. That’s how it is.

But soon… it won’t be just that.

…

The class advisor arrived a bit late, but didn’t seem surprised to see Chi Yunxing. She simply waved everyone back to their seats and said she would make the meeting quick so they could all leave sooner.

Old Zhang, worried Yunxing might get surrounded again, had him sit by the edge of the room so he could make a fast exit later.

Chi Yunxing appreciated their thoughtfulness. As the class advisor started speaking, he took out his phone and messaged the dorm group.

[Chi Yunxing: Want to grab dinner later? My treat!]

Zhou Ping replied the fastest.

[Zhou Ping: !!!]

[Old Wei: Can I pick that place that’s 1000 per head?]

[Old Zhang: If 1000’s too much, 500 works too!]

[Zhou Ping: ? Can you guys act normal for once?]

Chi Yunxing curved his lips in a smile and replied.

[Chi Yunxing: I’ve made money. How about the one that’s 2000 per head?]

[Old Wei: !!!]

[Old Zhang: Boss, you’re so generous!!]

[Zhou Ping: You got money like that now?]

Before Chi Yunxing could reply, Old Wei answered for him.

[Old Wei: Our boss was filming all summer, of course he made bank!]

Chi Yunxing typed back with a laugh.

[Chi Yunxing: Yup. Just come and eat, don’t worry about anything else.]

Truth to be told, it had been a long time since he last checked how much money he had. While filming, he hadn’t really spent anything. Back home, he didn’t need to spend a dime either.

He vaguely remembered his bank balance was in the eight digits. Not long ago, Chi Ling had given him a black card with no spending limit. Tan Yao and Chi Xiwen also regularly transferred him spending money.

The smallest amount was a million. The rest usually ranged from five to ten million.

Tan Yao liked auspicious numbers, so her transfers were often like 8,888,888 or 6,666,666.

Chi Xiwen always sent round numbers.

Chi Yunxing didn’t even need to look at the sender’s name, he could tell who it was just by the number.

He’d thought about telling his family to stop sending him money but in the end, he couldn’t say it.

That was their way of showing love and he didn’t have the heart to reject it.

The class advisor was true to her word. She wrapped things up quickly and announced the meeting was over.

Before anyone else could swarm Chi Yunxing, Zhou Ping and Old Wei flanked him on either side and led him out of the classroom, with Old Zhang walking in front to clear the way.

Chi Yunxing was caught between laughing and crying.

He had sent Chi Xiwen a message earlier, so a car was already waiting.

As soon as he exited the building, Chi Xiwen opened the door and waved at him.

Chi Yunxing smiled and called out, “Ge!”

Zhou Ping and the others followed his gaze and instantly spotted the two luxury cars parked nearby. The three of them were momentarily stunned.

Old Zhang was the first to recover and whispered, “Yunxing… this is your car?”

That luxury car had already gone viral on the campus forum. He had even scrolled past it during the class meeting.

Chi Yunxing smiled. “They’re probably my brother’s. He has too many, I don’t even remember them all.”

Old Wei gaped. “Your family’s seriously rich!”

Then he nudged Zhou Ping and muttered, “You’re still worried about our Yunxing not having money?”

Zhou Ping was still in shock, only managing to mumble, “N-not anymore…”

He was so stunned he forgot to remove the hand he had casually slung over Chi Yunxing’s shoulder.

When Chi Yunxing walked over to Chi Xiwen, Zhou Ping followed automatically.

Chi Yunxing didn’t seem to notice and cheerfully introduced his roommates.

Zhou Ping was so nervous he didn’t know what to say. His hand was still resting on Chi Yunxing’s shoulder.

Just then, the rear window of one of the cars rolled down, revealing a strikingly familiar and handsome face.

Old Zhang let out a sharp gasp, “T-t-t-that’s—!”

Old Wei was quicker. He immediately clamped a hand over Old Zhang’s mouth. “Shh! Keep it down!”

Two luxury cars were already drawing attention. If anyone realized Duan Zhiyan was sitting in one of them, they’d be surrounded in seconds.

Zhou Ping stood frozen, his mouth hanging open.

“That’s…”

“Hello, I’m Duan Zhiyan,” Duan Zhiyan smiled at the three of them. His gaze swept over Zhou Ping, pausing for a second on the hand still resting on Chi Yunxing’s shoulder, before quickly shifting away. “Sorry I can’t get out, it’s not convenient right now. I just wanted to say hi.”

Chi Xiwen smiled and said to the three, “Alright, we shouldn’t linger here. Go ahead and get in the car. We’ll chat more once we’re at the restaurant.”

At that, Old Wei nodded and quickly turned to go. Old Zhang tugged at the still-dazed Zhou Ping along behind them.

Chi Yunxing and Chi Xiwen also got into their car.

Even though Duan Zhiyan had only shown his face for a moment, a student still managed to snap a photo and post it to the school forum.

On the way to the restaurant, messages in the dorm group chat didn’t stop.

The three roommates first expressed their collective shock, then started wailing in all caps, and finally dropped a link.

[Old Wei: Movie Emperor Duan got caught on camera. Is he gonna be okay??]

Chi Yunxing tapped the link and saw that the OP had posted a photo right at the top.

【Is this Duan Zhiyan??? It is, right??? OMG!!!】

The thread blew up in no time.

【It’s Movie Emperor Duan!!!】

【Oh my god!!!】

【So it was him in that luxury car?? I should’ve gone over to see!!!】

【Wait—doesn’t that guy next to him look like Chi Yunxing?】

【Why would Chi Yunxing be there?】

【Today’s the start of the new semester, right?】

【Wait a sec—did Duan Zhiyan send Chi Yunxing to school? Did I just uncover something huge??】

Chi Yunxing’s brows twitched as he read. He quickly handed his phone to Duan Zhiyan. “Zhiyan Ge, we got caught on camera just now.”

Duan Zhiyan didn’t take the phone. Instead, he gently clasped the hand Chi Yunxing was holding it with, lowering his gaze to look at the screen.

Chi Yunxing instantly felt the warmth of his palm. It was so hot it made his fingers curl involuntarily.

In front, Chi Xiwen let out a cold snort. “Some people just wouldn’t listen. Now look at what happened.”

He sounded vaguely gloating.

Duan Zhiyan glanced through the post and curved his lips slightly. “It’s fine.”

He let go of Chi Yunxing’s hand, then picked up his own phone and made a call.

In just a few words, he gave his instructions. Then he said, “It’s taken care of. Don’t worry.”

When Chi Yunxing refreshed the page again, the original post had already been deleted.

He let out a small breath of relief, only for a trending Weibo notification to immediately pop up on his screen.

#DuanZhiyanChiYunxingAppearTogetherAtSouthU#

Chi Yunxing had a bad feeling. He tapped into the post and only to discover that a gossip account had reposted the forum content to Weibo!

The hashtag was climbing the charts fast and the comments were full of:

【KDL!!!】

【The CP I ship is real!!!】

【They just wrapped filming yesterday—and they’re already back together today! My heart!!!】

【Raise the banner for Zhixing! Everyone, full send!!】

At that very moment, both Duan Zhiyan’s and Chi Xiwen’s phones rang at the same time.

Duan Zhiyan’s call was from He You, while Chi Xiwen’s was from the PR department at his company.

Not long after both of them answered, Xie Yi also called Chi Yunxing.

After hanging up, Chi Xiwen glanced in the rearview mirror and said coldly, “See? I told you not to insist on coming to drop Yunxing off. Look what’s happened now.”

His tone even carried a hint of gloating.

Duan Zhiyan ended his call and calmly lifted his lips into a faint smile. “So what? This could be a good chance to hype up a CP.”

Chi Yunxing’s face instantly flushed red.

Chi Xiwen nearly lost it. “Do you even hear yourself?!”

Duan Zhiyan ignored him and instead turned his head slightly to look at Chi Yunxing.

Just then, the car entered a tunnel, and the cabin was plunged into darkness.

In that dim light, Chi Yunxing met Duan Zhiyan’s deep and luminous gaze—eyes that shimmered like flowing light.

The look was so intense it made Chi Yunxing’s face heat up even more.

“Zh-Zhiyan Ge…” Chi Yunxing stammered nervously, voice barely audible. “Why did you roll down the window back then?”

Duan Zhiyan’s gaze was tender and affectionate. He glanced briefly at the front seat to confirm Chi Xiwen was focused on driving.

Then he leaned in, his warm breath brushing Chi Yunxing’s ear as he murmured in a voice only the two of them could hear.

“Does Xingxing really not know?”