AAMIBBSBY 18

The temperature dropped sharply. The air was filled with ice crystal particles, carrying a hint of mist.

Xia Zhi’s whole body had long been frozen into an ice cube. He snuggled in Shen Shixiao’s arms, absorbing a moment of warmth.

Shen Shixiao took off his overcoat and gently draped it over Xia Zhi. “Let’s go home.”

The deep and gentle voice was unexpectedly warm. Xia Zhi gathered the overcoat, lifted his eyes that were frozen red, and burst into a momentary smile.

“Let’s wear it together. It’s quite a distance from here to the parking lot—you will catch a cold wearing only a sweater.”

Shen Shixiao paused for a moment. He asked in a low voice, “How do the two of us wear it together?”

Xia Zhi lowered his eyes and pondered, his gaze darting back and forth on the overcoat. 

It wasn’t impossible for two people to wear it together. Wouldn’t it work if Shen Shixiao put it on and held him in his arms?

This thought is a bit scary!

Those deep eyes seemed able to pry into people’s minds. Shen Shixiao stared at him with great interest for a while, walked over and draped the overcoat over his shoulders, raising his arm towards him. “Come here.”

Xia Zhi pursed his lips, his heart surging with turbulent waves! 

This posture is a bit ambiguous.

Only hesitating for five seconds, he cheerfully trotted into Shen Shixiao’s arms, lowering his brows and dropping his eyes, half-hiding his emotions and saying calmly, “Let’s go.”

With a trace of a low chuckle above his head, Shen Shixiao held him tightly. “Let’s go.”

Returning home, Xia Zhi was urged into the bathroom and took a refreshing hot shower. While drying his hair with a towel, he remembered the video Yan Wenqing gave him.

How exactly Xia Mingxuan fell today, he had to look at it carefully. Moreover, there were seven or eight camera angles in total and he wasn’t sure which angle could capture the actors’ leg movements. After all, this scene was a close-up of the upper body.

His bedroom didn’t have a computer, but Shen Shixiao’s room did. 

Of course, the guest room downstairs also had one.

Holding the USB flash drive, Xia Zhi’s thoughts unknowingly drifted back to the day Shen Shixiao gave him the jade. 

Including today, what did Shen Shixiao mean by ‘going home’? 

Is this really his home?

Yingyingying¹Similar to “wuwu” (呜呜), this is an internet slang onomatopoeia for crying. However, “yingyingying” implies a much more delicate, overly cute, or damsel-in-distress style of weeping.! It’s too complex, his head hurts!

Not long after, Shen Shixiao’s bedroom door was knocked on. 

Shen Shixiao was on the phone, and said towards the door, “Enter.”

Xia Zhi held his breath, pushing open the bedroom door. 

Having just come out of the bathroom, his body carried a faint water mist and the fragrance of body wash. The water drops remaining on the tips of his hair followed his slender, fair neck, falling onto his collarbone, faintly discernible.

Shen Shixiao hung up the phone. “Is something the matter?”

Xia Zhi shook the USB flash drive in his hand. “Today’s accident on set—I want to look closely, but there’s no computer in my room.”

Shen Shixiao: “Use mine.”

Opening the USB flash drive, there were many files inside. If he just relied on filtering them one by one, he would have to watch for a full day and night.

Xia Zhi looked up. “Can I use your computer to download a software? That way, it’s convenient to browse and compare the videos.”

Shen Shixiao: “You can.”

While downloading the software, Xia Zhi’s hands rested on his legs, appearing slightly constrained. At this moment, he inadvertently saw a folder on the computer named “summer.” His heart sank.

Shen Shixiao’s bai yueguang seemed to be named summer. 

Shen Shixiao must really love summer.

At this moment, Xia Zhi felt like a small boat placed amidst the waves, everything around him was illusory and ethereal, completely unable to be grasped.

The software finally finished downloading. Xia Zhi held the mouse, trying his best not to let Shen Shixiao see the slightest clue. 

However, Shen Shixiao still noticed.

“Your complexion is not very good.”

“Is that so?” Xia Zhi smiled. “Low blood sugar—my stomach is a little hungry.”

Shen Shixiao stood up. He pushed open the bedroom door and walked downstairs. “I’ll go get you some food.”

Only Xia Zhi was left alone in the room. Staring at that folder harboring a secret, his breathing rose and fell irregularly, his heartbeat getting faster and faster, as he slowly closed his eyes.

When Shen Shixiao returned, Xia Zhi had already opened the software, dragged all the videos onto the same page, and started comparing them.

“Here is fruit and cake, eat some first. I’ll have Auntie Li cook for you.”

Xia Zhi licked his dry lips and softly said, “Thank you.”

The cantaloupe and red grapes were very sweet. He bit them gently, his breathing calming down quite a bit. “Thank you for today. You can go rest first, I can do it myself.”

Shen Shixiao continued staring at the screen, with no intention of leaving. Speeding up the video a bit, he then replied, “Having an extra person will be faster.”

The temperature in the room was high enough. Xia Zhi wasn’t cold at all. The collar of his pajamas had been pulled open a bit wider, and he didn’t even realize it.

The footage moved rapidly, and Shen Shixiao suddenly said, “Stop.”

Looking over, Xia Mingxuan’s foot was stepping right on the hem of Xia Zhi’s robe.

After Shen Shixiao saw this scene, he suddenly narrowed his eyes, a trace of danger flashing through them. 

If Xia Zhi hadn’t pulled out his robe first, then the one who ended up injured would have been Xia Zhi. 

Xia Zhi wasn’t stupid; after watching this part, he understood everything.

Xia Mingxuan was a classic case of trying to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice. 

Serves him right.

“Then should we make this video public?” Xia Zhi opened Weibo and muttered softly, “The comment section is full of people scolding me, but I scolded them back in my heart.”

As he spoke, he clicked open the hot search, unexpectedly finding that the related topics had already disappeared.

Shen Shixiao explained, “I had my assistant contact them and take down the hot search.”

“That must have cost a lot of money…” Xia Zhi felt a faint heartache, clutching his plush pajamas and muttering softly, “Thank you.”

“You’ve already said thank you to me many times tonight.” Shen Shixiao raised his hand and rubbed his hair whorl. “No need to be so polite with me.”

Xia Zhi half-raised his eyes. “Are you this good to everyone?”

Shen Shixiao laughed. “Do you think I look like a philanthropist?”

Xia Zhi curved his smiling eyes, gently shaking his head.

But why are you so good to me? 

Is it because I’m cute and charming?

Xia Zhi hid these two sentences in his heart, not daring to ask them out loud. 

Before going to bed, Shen Shixiao told Xia Zhi that he would help him handle this matter well, telling him to sleep well and not worry. 

Xia Zhi inexplicably trusted him, and not long after lying in bed, he fell asleep.

On the internet, although the hot search had already been taken down, it didn’t stop the enthusiasm of the melon-eating crowds. Instead, it stimulated their curiosity. 

Xia Zhi, an 18th-tier minor celebrity, where did he get the money to take down a hot search? 

Or perhaps, he has an incredible backer behind him?

At this time, a certain forum dug up the video of Xia Zhi publicly stating he was married during his first interview, and netizens started deeply digging into who Xia Zhi’s husband was. 

However, after digging for a whole night, everyone had no clues whatsoever, as if this person didn’t exist at all.

Unable to dig up Xia Zhi’s husband, netizens couldn’t help but guess—could it be that the husband from Xia Zhi’s mouth doesn’t exist? Or perhaps this person is Xia Zhi’s financial backer²Or gold master or sugar daddy. I usually use gold master if you noticed, especially when Zhizhi uses it to refer to Shixiao.?

With this clue, the netizens became excited. The words “entertainment circle’s unspoken rules³This term refers to the hidden, illicit practices within an industry. In the entertainment world, it almost exclusively refers to the “casting couch”—trading sexual favors for roles, money, or protection.” were enough to pique everyone’s interest.

In the hospital, Xia Mingxuan lay on the hospital bed browsing forum information, and Qin Wanru beside him was peeling fruit for him.

He made a phone call to his team, instructing them to buy some more professional black fans, bound to make Xia Zhi unable to make a comeback this time.

When he fell, he then had this idea. 

He was not afraid of Xia Zhi and the others finding the video of him stepping on his robe. After all, he could easily find an excuse saying he was too immersed in his acting—an unintentional act. Anyway, he was the victim and public opinion would mostly lean towards him. 

Looking at Xia Zhi on the other hand, having this precursor of being a wealthy family’s illegitimate child, no matter what he said, no one would believe that he wasn’t intentionally venting his anger.

Qin Wanru fed him a piece of apple and smugly said, “Your dad and I have agreed, we will align our stories and say Xia Zhi is an illegitimate child.”

Xia Mingxuan lazily raised his eyes. “My dad—he agreed? After all, Xia Zhi latched onto Shen Shixiao, doesn’t he have misgivings about the Shen family?”

Mentioning Shen Shixiao, Qin Wanru gave a cold snort. “Your dad saw clearly that Xia Zhi’s nature is just a white-eyed wolf. Moreover, the Shen family ignores us and we can’t reap any benefits anyway.”

After hearing these words, Xia Mingxuan was completely reassured. He leaned slightly against the pillow, a trace of gloomy hatred surging at the bottom of his eyes.

This time, Xia Zhi shouldn’t think about having another chance to jump around⁴To be active, make waves, or try to stay relevant. It’s often used derogatorily (like a bug jumping around before it’s squashed).! 

Perhaps, after Xia Zhi’s reputation stinks, whether Shen Shixiao is still willing to want him is another story.

The next day, Weibo climbed up with a new hot search term again.

【Xia Zhi, illegitimate child】

Even though the hot search was quickly taken down, it still couldn’t block the netizens’ enthusiasm for eating melons. There were even busybody marketing accounts that put Xia Zhi and Xia Mingxuan’s photos together to conduct discussions and comparisons.

At the Shen Group, Shen Shixiao’s expression was grave, listening to his assistant report the current public opinion situation. At present, just releasing the clarification video was no longer enough to prove Xia Zhi’s innocence. Regarding his background, that also needed clarification.

The assistant asked, “Do you need me to call Xia Huaishan and give him a little benefit? He came to the company looking for you every day a while ago.”

Shen Shixiao’s brows were cold and solemn. “No need. A person like him does not deserve a single bit of benefit.”

At the same time, at the Xia family villa, Xia Zhi’s stealthy figure appeared.

Many servants of the Xia family watched Xia Zhi grow up and felt very heartbroken over his experiences. Therefore, when Xia Zhi proposed wanting to sneak into his mother’s bedroom, the servants turned a blind eye and acted entirely as if they didn’t see it.

This room hadn’t been cleaned; Qin Wanru might have also felt a guilty conscience, ordering people to lock it up, using it as a messy storage room.

Xia Zhi familiarly opened the wardrobe and found some personal belongings his mother had placed there. Among them was one item, which was Xia Zhi’s birth certificate. 

His mother didn’t have time to take these things away before she left, and that old bastard Xia Huaishan couldn’t be counted on, so he could only take the risk to come here to look.

His mother’s bedroom was on the third floor. Xia Zhi carefully climbed along the window and climbed into his own bedroom. 

Inside was covered in a thick layer of dust; he tiptoed to the bedside, gently bent down, and pulled out a box from inside.

Inside the box was a treasure box he hid here when he was little, all being some interesting small objects. However, his coming this time was mainly aiming for the two pendants in the treasure box.  

When he was little, his physique was weak. Once when he was sick, his mother prayed for a pair of pendants, saying they could ensure safety and grant wishes.

At fifteen years old, he wrote four words on them: Intertwining branches, sharing a tomb.

Leaving the Xia family, Xia Zhi held the things, returning with a full load, while Xia Huaishan and Qin Wanru in the living room were completely unaware.

After arriving home, Xia Zhi happened to bump into Shen Shixiao driving home. He deliberately dawdled waiting for him to enter the house first, secretly opened the car and climbed in, hiding one of the pendants under the car seat.

That pendant had the two words “intertwining branches” written on it.

Sigh, it counts as a lucky charm anyway, putting it here shouldn’t be a big deal. 

Moreover, he didn’t really do anything. He just quietly placed an object, and even less deliberately provoked the relationship between Shen Shixiao and his bai yueguang. 

When the bai yueguang comes back, he will just secretly take it away.

Well, he seems to be liking Shen Shixiao a little bit. 

Hmm, what should be done about this.

• 1
  Similar to “wuwu” (呜呜), this is an internet slang onomatopoeia for crying. However, “yingyingying” implies a much more delicate, overly cute, or damsel-in-distress style of weeping.
• 2
  Or gold master or sugar daddy. I usually use gold master if you noticed, especially when Zhizhi uses it to refer to Shixiao.
• 3
  This term refers to the hidden, illicit practices within an industry. In the entertainment world, it almost exclusively refers to the “casting couch”—trading sexual favors for roles, money, or protection.
• 4
  To be active, make waves, or try to stay relevant. It’s often used derogatorily (like a bug jumping around before it’s squashed).