TSBDRA 49: It Really Hurts

After finishing the recording, Bai Keke took the initiative to exchange contact information with Xu Xishuang and Yan Yao, then left cheerfully.

On the way back to the film set, Xu Xishuang received a reply from Dr. Xu.

Dr. Xu: “It’s a good thing that the bleeding has decreased. You haven’t been coughing up blood as often lately, right? That means your body is gradually recovering. Congratulations.”

Dr. Xu: “Keep it up and stick with the treatment. You might recover completely sooner than you think.”

Xu Xishuang replied: “Okay, thank you, Dr. Xu.”

Unlike Dr. Xu’s optimism, Xu Xishuang wasn’t quite as hopeful. He could feel his body was doing a bit better than before, but he knew the original plot’s “death flag” wasn’t that easy to avoid.

Putting down his phone, Xu Xishuang glanced at Yan Yushan sitting next to him, wondering whether he should tell him about coughing up blood and what Dr. Xu said. Seeing Yan Yushan deep in thought, as if contemplating something important, he decided not to interrupt.

Yan Yushan was thinking about the advice Liang Feng had given him.

Liang Feng had said, “Xiao Yan, sometimes a man needs to show a little weakness. Don’t think it’s embarrassing. I know you’re used to being tough and handling everything on your own, but right now, you’re the one doing the chasing—don’t forget that.”

Liang Feng continued, “You’re the loyal type, I know. You like Xu Xishuang because you’re thinking long-term, probably even marriage, right? All the more reason to learn how to show a bit of vulnerability. Otherwise, after you get married, you’ll end up kneeling on a washboard every day… Okay, off-topic. What I mean is, since you’re pursuing your partner now, a few harmless tricks are totally fine. You need to let him know how you feel.”

Liang Feng said, “Let me give you a simple example. Remember last year during my concert tour, when the lift malfunctioned and I fell? Honestly, I just scraped myself and got a bruise, but to win Huihui over, I said I had a minor fracture. I complained about the pain every day, acted all pitiful, then Huihui came over to take care of me, and we got together. We’re still dating now.”

Liang Feng went on, “You’ve got to learn to act pitiful. That’s how you stir up your crush’s sympathy and protective instincts. It makes them care about you, gives you a chance for physical contact, and lets you test how much they actually like you.”

Liang Feng concluded, “I’ve got experience—trust me, you can’t go wrong listening to me.”

Yan Yushan was tempted.

But he didn’t want to make Xu Xishuang take care of him—that would be too tiring. Xu Xishuang was still pregnant, after all.

This stayed on Yan Yushan’s mind, and even when he was telling Xu Xishuang a bedtime story that night, he kept spacing out. His sentences didn’t connect smoothly, but thankfully Xu Xishuang was already asleep and didn’t notice.

What Yan Yushan didn’t expect was that his chance to act pitiful would come so soon.

The next day, filming continued as usual.

The drama Who’s Standing Behind the Door was nearing completion. Two scenes were scheduled for today, focusing mainly on the two leads.

The first to film were Yan Yushan, Yan Yao, Qu Yue, and Luo Huai. They had all changed into their new police uniforms, and the word “Captain” on Yan Yushan’s chest had been replaced with “Chief.”

His new black uniform was sharp and crisp, the prop gun slung behind his waist, his V-shaped build on full display. Xu Xishuang watched for a while and thought Yan Yushan looked very good in black. His tall frame already gave him a natural, overpowering presence, and now he seemed like a drawn blade—so sharp you couldn’t look at him directly.

Following the earlier scene leading up to the finale, the body of Chen Muzhou hadn’t been recovered. The retrieval team searched both upstream and downstream but found nothing.

The car had exploded so violently back then that most people assumed Chen Muzhou couldn’t have survived—maybe he’d been blown to pieces just like the car. That’s why the retrieval team couldn’t find an intact body. But Yan Zheng couldn’t shake the nagging feeling in his gut. His instincts told him that Chen Muzhou was likely still at large.

Over the next month, Yan Zheng led the Special Action Unit to dismantle each of Chen Muzhou’s criminal hideouts, arresting all the culprits.

Crime rates in the city dropped significantly, and everything returned to peace. Yan Zheng was promoted to Chief of the Special Action Bureau for his achievements, while the former chief, Lu Qingyu, was transferred to a higher post.

At the farewell party for Lu Qingyu and also a promotion celebration for Yan Zheng, he was forced to drink a lot by his colleagues. Drunk and dizzy, he stumbled into the bathroom to splash water on his face, hoping to sober up. He accidentally bumped into someone wearing a cap, their face obscured.

He apologized, then noticed the person had dropped a book. Instinctively, he bent down to pick it up and tried to chase after them. But when he saw the title of the book in his hand, his blood seemed to freeze, and he stood there in a daze.

On the cover were the words Who’s Standing Behind the Door.

A flash of memory hit him—Chen Muzhou standing in a bookstore, holding a book with the exact same title. There was no way Yan Zheng was mistaken.

He immediately rushed out to find the person, but after only a few steps, a wave of dizziness struck him, and he collapsed on the floor, unconscious.

Next came the part where Yan Zheng wakes up in the hospital, is told he had alcohol poisoning, that the restaurant’s surveillance footage just happened to be broken, that no trace of the man from last night could be found, and that the book titled Who’s Standing Behind the Door on his bedside table turned out to be just an ordinary copy. On top of that, orders came down from higher-ups telling him to drop the investigation altogether. Director Cheng Tianwen planned to shoot all of that later. For now, Yan Yushan only needed to film the scene where Yan Zheng collapses and passes out.

Falling scenes, like crying scenes, are essential skills for actors. Yan Yushan had done more than he could count when it came to injury scenes. A simple fall like this was routine for him—he could nail it in one take, no second try needed.

But in that moment, Liang Feng’s words from the day before flashed through his mind. Yan Yushan quickly turned his head to glance at Xu Xishuang outside the set, then looked back, surveying the scene layout, calculating the distance, and waiting for Cheng Tianwen to call “action.”

Cheng Tianwen had no idea about the little scheme Yan Yushan was cooking up. “Action!”

As the camera moved, Yan Yushan burst out of the bathroom door and sprinted toward the lobby. Mid-run, his footing suddenly faltered, and he fell forward.

But instead of falling in the spot he’d originally planned, he veered slightly off course and slammed his forehead into the leg of a prop table. A large red bump swelled up instantly.

Xu Xishuang, who had been sitting calmly outside the set, shot to his feet and instinctively took two quick steps forward.

The camera was still rolling, and Yan Yushan kept his eyes tightly shut, looking like he had genuinely lost consciousness.

The take was technically a success, but it scared Cheng Tianwen half to death. Crew members immediately rushed over, surrounding Yan Yushan, hurriedly pulling him up and anxiously asking if he needed to go to the hospital, afraid the fall might’ve caused serious injury.

Yan Yushan opened his eyes and instantly caught sight of Xu Xishuang hurrying over from outside the set. The corners of his mouth briefly lifted, then quickly shifted back to a pained frown. In a weak voice, he said, “No need, I just need to rest for a bit. Sorry for scaring everyone because of my mistake.”

He slowly made his way to a chair outside the set. Staff hurried to get him ice packs and ointments, surrounding him completely. Yan Yushan looked at Xu Xishuang being blocked outside the crowd and grew a little anxious, but kept his face calm. “I can do it myself. You guys go back to work.”

Once the crowd dispersed, Xu Xishuang paused briefly, then finally walked over to Yan Yushan.

When he saw Yan Yushan get hurt, his heart almost leapt out of his chest.

Only when Yan Yushan got up and walked off set, holding his forehead but seeming not too badly injured, did his frantic heartbeat begin to calm.

Xu Xishuang raised a hand and placed it gently over his chest. He didn’t understand why he felt so panicked. Was he afraid something would happen to the male lead and this fictional world would collapse?

Or… had he already come to consider Yan Yushan a close friend, which was why he was so affected and worried?

But at that moment, when Yan Yushan looked at him, Xu Xishuang’s mind went completely blank. The awkwardness from the accidental kiss disappeared entirely. His feet seemed to move on their own, carrying him over.

As they locked eyes, Xu Xishuang hadn’t even asked, “Are you okay?” when he saw Yan Yushan suddenly put on a pitiful expression and say in a low voice, “It really hurts.”

Xu Xishuang’s fingers trembled slightly.

He had never seen this side of Yan Yushan.

In his mind, Yan Yushan was the kind of man who could think clearly under pressure and carry any burden. Even when trapped by a landslide in a mountain cave, he could stay calm, survive, and come back home with wildflowers from the cave entrance. He didn’t shy away from that harrowing experience but faced it head-on. And now, here he was, acting all pitiful over a bump on his forehead.

The sudden softness hit hard—it was lethal.

Xu Xishuang didn’t stand a chance. He stammered, “D-Does it hurt a lot?”

“It really hurts.” Yan Yushan gently pressed the ice pack to his injury, then suddenly let out a sharp hiss, looking as if the pain was absolutely unbearable.

Before his brain could catch up, Xu Xishuang heard himself say, “Do you want me to put the ointment on for you?”

Yan Yushan’s eyes lit up.

He shifted over, making room for Xu Xishuang, and took out the ointment from the first aid kit brought by the staff, giving him no chance to back out. “Thanks.”

Since he’d offered, Xu Xishuang had no choice but to sit down beside him. He wiped his hands clean with a wet tissue, opened the ointment tube, and squeezed a little onto his fingertip.

He raised his hand, then hesitated. “Maybe let Xiao Wang do it…”

“No.” Yan Yushan immediately replied.

Realizing his tone was too firm and didn’t fit his pitiful act, he quickly softened his voice. “I don’t want anyone else to see me like this.”

Xu Xishuang swallowed the question “Then why can I?” and simply nodded. He lifted his hand again.

He didn’t voice that question. He had a strange gut feeling that whatever answer Yan Yushan gave, he wouldn’t be ready to hear it.

Because of his privileged background and looks, Xu Xishuang had always been used to going after what he wanted. But for the first time, he found avoidance to be painful. He didn’t dare probe deeper. He pressed his lips together and forced himself to focus on Yan Yushan’s injury.

Yan Yushan cooperatively tilted his head, bringing his forehead closer to Xu Xishuang’s hand. Their distance shrank once again. It was so close that Xu Xishuang could feel his breath on his neck. It felt like that night they had collapsed on the bed after drinking too much. He instinctively shrank his shoulders.

Xu Xishuang’s hands were warm from sitting near a small heater outside. His soft fingertips gently rubbed the ointment on Yan Yushan’s forehead, chilled from the ice pack. The contrasting sensations made both of their breaths a little unsteady.

After applying the ointment according to the instructions, Xu Xishuang avoided Yan Yushan’s gaze, took a tissue, and slowly wiped his hands. He casually brought up a topic, “You… should really get an assistant. It’d be easier to have someone take care of you.”

Yan Yushan stared at him. “We’ll see.”

Suddenly, Director Cheng Tianwen shouted through a megaphone from afar, “Xiao Xu, you’re up!”

“I’m going.” Startled by the shout, Xu Xishuang quickly stood up and waved at Yan Yushan.

Watching him walk over, Cheng Tianwen couldn’t help but comment to Yan Yao beside him, “Xiao Yan and Xiao Xu sure are close—he even insisted on putting on ointment himself. Xiao Yan’s eyes were glued to him the whole time.”

Yan Yao was startled and slammed the cabinet shut. “Ah, well, they are good friends after all.”

Cheng Tianwen didn’t think much of it. “True. Yan Yushan used to deal with injuries himself all the time—he would go to the hospital alone even with a fracture. But now that he has a good friend, things are different.”

Yan Yao gave a dry laugh.

But deep down, she was relieved too. The strange tension between Xu Xishuang and Yan Yushan seemed to have finally broken. Xu Xishuang even took the initiative to help with the ointment today. Maybe there would be no more awkwardness between them from now on.