SG 47

The sound of raindrops hitting the glass became louder and louder, the room was filled with a smell of sweat, and the bed sheets were in a mess. Yan Anqing was picked up and sat astride him, clinging to Chu Baiyan’s neck like a koala, his whole body soft like fermented dough. 

Chu Baiyan’s physical strength was amazing, and before Yan Anqing could recover, the second round had already begun. Yan Anqing was crying and panting, his throat was dry and hoarse, and it seemed as if all the moisture in his body had been squeezed out. 

In the middle of the night, he wanted to drink water, but Chu Baiyan held his buttocks and carried him to the kitchen to get some water. Walking all the way there and back, Yan Anqing was half conscious again. The tears in his eyes had not dissipated, and he looked at Chu Baiyan with blurry eyes. 

His mouth and tongue became numb from too many kisses, and when Chu Baiyan kissed him again, Yan Anqing couldn’t even hold his lips, and could only stick out his tongue to lick them. 

Throughout the night, Yan Anqing confirmed to Chu Baiyan over and over again that “you are mine”, and Chu Baiyan patiently told him “I will always be yours”. These answers, accompanied by squelching sound and panting during the kiss, were ingrained in Yan Anqing’s brain.

After taking a shower and lying back on the bed, Yan Anqing didn’t even have the strength to open his eyelids. He crawled into Chu Baiyan’s arms and fell into a deep sleep. The next morning, his biological clock did work, but his eyelids were too heavy to open. 

“Sleep a little longer, it’s okay to get up later.” Chu Baiyan held him and patted Yan Anqing’s back gently. The person in his arms hummed twice, and Chu Baiyan didn’t hear clearly what he wanted to say before falling asleep again. He kissed Yan Anqing’s forehead, fortunately he didn’t have a fever. 

When Yan Anqing woke up again, the light in the room was still very dim. His five senses slowly awakened, and he could hear the sound of rain outside the window. He looked at Chu Baiyan beside him and asked, bewildered, “What time is it?” 

“Eight-thirty. I just made the porridge. You can eat it when you get up soon.” 

He was young and strong, Yan Anqing relaxed for a moment before throwing off the covers and getting out of bed. Aside from weak legs and soreness, he didn’t feel any major discomfort. 

He opened the window for some fresh air. The rain was still falling outside, but it had considerably decreased. He took a sip of the steaming porridge and ate a steamed bun, and the hunger and fatigue finally dissipated. 

“Can I open the shop today?” Chu Baiyan saw he had finished his bowl and poured another half. 

“Sure. If you feel uncomfortable, close the shop and come up to sleep.” Yan Anqing remembered Chu Baiyan’s usual advice. 

Rainy days like these were rare. His arms were a little weak, and he couldn’t use the potter’s wheel, so Yan Anqing made some hand-kneaded ceramics. 

Chu Baiyan had been worried about the video influencer, wondering if he was just being timid that day or if he was really planning to cause trouble. A few days passed, and things calmed down, allowing Chu Baiyan’s frayed nerves to relax for a moment. 

Yan Anqing quickly forgot about that day’s events; his world was short on things to focus on. The two of them developed a closer bond. Beyond pottery, his thoughts and eyes were filled with Chu Baiyan. 

With the door opened to a new world, the urge to explore was at its strongest. Behind closed doors, Yan Anqing became even more unbridled in his pursuit of his possession, eager to cling to him, caressing and cuddling. 

Chu Baiyan, young and full of passion, couldn’t resist such a flirtation. Yan Anqing would always inadvertently spark it, and the two would end up on the sofa or bed while kissing. 

Yan Anqing was a novice, passionate when flirting, yet unable to resist begging for mercy when the pressure was too much. His eyes and body flushed red, looking both pitiful and infuriating, which only made Chu Baiyan want to “bully” him. 

September ended with the National Day holiday, after which the tourist season would end, with only three performances per day. While his income would decrease slightly, Chu Baiyan would have plenty of time to help Yan Anqing run the shop. 

On October 2nd, during lunch break, a female coworker was watching videos while eating, as usual, when her eyes suddenly stopped at a video feed. 

“Xiao Chu, check out this video!” the coworker pushed to Chu Baiyan. 

Chu Baiyan was halfway through his meal when he clicked on it. It was actually a video from the afternoon of the plate-breaking incident at Starfish Pottery. The video had been edited to depict the owner bullying customers, being impatient with inquiring customers, and then his companions violently assaulting the customer after the plate was accidentally broken. 

Due to word order adjustments and reorganization, the video didn’t include the influencer’s request for a free plate. It only captured the purchase process. Yan Anqing said, “Get out! You’re not welcome in my shop.” Then, the plate was accidentally broken, and Chu Baiyan punched the influencer, causing a bloody nose, and then kicked him to the ground. 

The video ended with a photo of the influencer’s bruised face and a photo of a broken phone screen, denouncing unscrupulous businesses that treated customers maliciously after becoming internet-famous. 

No wonder the influencer had been quiet, waiting for a major event during the National Day holiday, when tourists were most likely to make a big move. Chu Baiyan turned off the video, threw his phone on the table, and asked, “Do you believe what’s in this video?” 

“What’s going on? Send it to me.” Seeing this, the other coworkers were also curious about the content of the video. 

“How is it possible? That shop owner is very socially anxious and would never treat customers like that.” After watching it, the coworkers thought it was outrageous. 

“Chu’er, why did you hit that guy?” another male coworker asked. 

Chu Baiyan recounted the details of that day and shared the complete surveillance video that he had saved. 

“Fuck, what a shameless person! He opened the door to shameless people. Shameless to the extreme.” The male coworker was furious after watching it. Isn’t this bullying? “He relied on his fans to come to his store and tried to get something for free, but he failed, and he actually turned the tables.” ” 

That’s right, that guy’s handmade pottery shop has been popular for a long time. If he’s so awesome, why doesn’t he go to those lesser-known shops to film and explore them?” Another female coworker was also indignant. 

“What’s the point of us knowing? Xiao Chu, quickly post the video online to clarify things. We’ll help you post it too,” suggested the female coworker who first discovered the rumor-mongering video. 

“Everyone, calm down. Don’t post it yet. This influencer chose now to post it, isn’t it just to make things worse? If we all post it, it will only make the topic more heated. He has a lot of followers, and if we manipulate public opinion, it will be even more unfavorable.” 

A female coworker who hadn’t spoken until now watched Chu Baiyan’s video carefully and said it wasn’t that simple. Everyone meant well, but if they acted rashly, they might just give the influencer more attention.

“Wait and see how big this video’s impact is. With so many videos posted online every day, new ones will quickly overshadow old ones. Who knows, it might die down in a few days.” 

Chu Baiyan had never experienced such things before, and his heart was in turmoil. He wanted to help Yan Anqing clarify things, but he was also afraid that, as his coworker had said, he would do more harm than good and escalate the situation. 

“We’ll keep an eye on him for the next few days and let you know if anything happens. This guy is really bad. He’s used to getting away with things for free, and when he meets someone who doesn’t satisfy him, he starts to turn things upside down.” The female coworker who spoke last sighed and continued. 

“The key is that the plate fell to the ground the moment he let go. It’s hard to tell if he let go on purpose or just accidentally broke it. The surveillance video doesn’t show that either, which gives him room to maneuver.” 

The remaining half of the lunch box was already cold. Chu Baiyan glanced at it, his appetite gone. He packed up the lunch box and put it in his bag, then took his water cup to the tea room for water. Just as he tossed the lunch box into the trash, he turned and saw the female coworker who had urged him to wait. 

“Xiao Chu, are you close to the owner of the pottery shop?” the coworker asked evasively. 

She hadn’t been able to say it directly in the break room. She had a reason for not letting everyone share the surveillance video. Chu Baiyan’s attitude towards the owner, his defense of him, and his physical assault clearly indicated a special relationship between the two.

If the video got posted directly, it could be used against them, and instead of clearing things up, it could lead to attacks about their relationship, making things worse.

They had been performing in the water with Chu Baiyan for almost half a year, and they knew that he was not an impulsive and reckless person. Xiao Chu was polite to everyone, but indifferent, and she had never heard him mention dating a girl. 

She had heard him say that he had a good relationship with the owner of the pottery shop, and everyone treated them as ordinary friends. After seeing the video today, she realized that this kind of impulsiveness and anger were far from what ordinary friends would have.