When Rong Xu woke, it was already noon the next day. Seeing the time on his phone, he widened his eyes, propped himself up to get out of bed, but the moment his feet touched the floor, a sharp pain shot through his lower back, sending him collapsing back onto the bed.

In that moment, memories of the previous night flooded his mind.

How they’d started kissing at the entrance, how he’d accidentally exposed himself, how Qin Cheng had walked away resolutely, only for Rong Xu to seduce him back…

Covering his face with his right hand, a blush crept up his cheeks, and Rong Xu bit his lip in embarrassment.

But the memories didn’t stop there!

He recalled how boldly he’d done that for Qin Cheng, how he’d shouted those wild words, how he’d eagerly stripped off his clothes, excitedly watching himself in the mirror, urging Qin Cheng to go faster… until, in the end, when Qin Cheng was ready to stop, Rong Xu had pulled him into another round in the bathroom!

Rong Xu: “…”

Yeah, he must’ve drunk some fake liquor last night.

Just then, the front door opened. Moments later, Luo Qi entered, carrying a bowl of porridge and several light, appetizing side dishes. Seeing Rong Xu awake, she said cheerfully, “Xiao Xu, you’re finally up! You slept till noon.”

As she spoke, Luo Qi set the dishes and porridge on a small table, then placed it on Rong Xu’s bed.

Rong Xu paused, puzzled. “Sister Xiaoqi, what’s this…?”

Luo Qi smiled, as if it were obvious. “Aren’t you sick? Eat something light, Xiao Xu. You’ve got filming tomorrow. If we delay further, we might not keep up with the schedule.”

Rong Xu was utterly confused by her words.

From Luo Qi’s explanation, he pieced together what had happened.

That morning, when Rong Xu hadn’t gotten up, Luo Qi came to check on him. It was only six a.m., and Qin Cheng, unaware that Rong Xu often went to the set an hour early, answered the door. The moment it opened, Rosie saw Qin Cheng.

Instantly, she stammered in nervous excitement, “Q-Qin… God Qin? Why are you here? This is Xiao Xu’s room!”

Luo Qi’s favorite celebrities were just two: Rong Xu and Qin Cheng. She was used to Rong Xu by now, but seeing Qin Cheng still left her starstruck.

Yet, the tall, imposing man stood against the light, completely composed, and said calmly, “I came to see Rong Xu last night. He seemed unwell. I checked his temperature—it was a bit low.”

Luo Qi blinked, immediately concerned. “Then he can’t film today? How’s Xiao Xu? Should we get a doctor?” She started to step inside.

Just as Luo Qi was about to enter and spot the not-fully-dried bedsheets and pillowcases, Qin Cheng calmly blocked her path. Looking down at her, the striking, aloof man said coolly, “Go request a day off for Xiao Xu first.”

Faced with that flawless face, Luo Qi swallowed hard, blurted a fervent “Yes,” and rushed off to ask Director Xu for leave.

Hearing Rong Xu was sick, Director Xu recalled the previous day’s incident. Such an event could affect one’s mood, and a mood swing could plausibly lead to illness.

Feeling guilty, Director Xu approved the leave, urging Rong Xu to rest well. But when Luo Qi let slip, “God Qin told me Xiao Xu was sick,” Director Xu raised an eyebrow, smirking. “Oh, Qin Cheng? Isn’t he visiting my set? Perfect, let him advise on the second male lead’s casting.”

Qin Cheng, upon hearing this: “…”

Thus, having just changed the sheets and pillowcases, restoring the room to its original state, Qin Cheng was whisked away by Director Xu.

Luo Qi, unaware of the bedding swap, took Qin Cheng’s word that Rong Xu was sick. She didn’t check his temperature, simply preparing light meals as instructed, waiting for him to wake.

Holding a spoon in one hand, scooping the white, glutinous rice porridge, while the other hand gently stroked the clean blanket.

The boy’s gaze gradually fell on the neatly made bed. Looking at the clean and tidy bedding, he slowly curled his lips into a faint smile.

Even without being told, Rong Xu knew that Qin Cheng must have taken care of the sheets.

This was a hotel, not home. If the room wasn’t properly cleaned, and hotel staff came in to tidy up, it would be easy for them to discover what had happened here.

As a celebrity, one must always be mindful of privacy. There had once been a scandal where a celebrity had an affair with a mistress in a hotel room, and the cleaning lady found certain “evidence” on the bed. She lacked professional ethics and sold the story to a paparazzi.

Though the paparazzi didn’t know who the mistress was, it was known that the celebrity’s wife was filming overseas at the time—there was no way she could have been in the country. As a result, the story about the celebrity cheating in a hotel went public, causing a huge uproar, and eventually led to a divorce.

Qin Cheng… was truly meticulous.

Rong Xu’s smile deepened as he stared at the white sheets.

Suddenly, Luo Qi spoke up. “Xiao Xu, why are you suddenly smiling like that… so happily? Did something happen?”

The smile on Rong Xu’s lips froze for a moment. He calmly raised his head to look at Luo Qi and asked seriously, “Did something happen?”

Seeing her artist suddenly act so serious, Luo Qi was momentarily stunned before saying, “Xiao Xu, you’re acting strange.”

Rong Xu: “…Am I?”

Luo Qi: “You are. Also… Xiao Xu, have you noticed that you look even more handsome today?”

Rong Xu: “……”

Luo Qi thought for a moment, then seriously added, “Yes, definitely better looking than before. Your skin is paler and more delicate—rosy and radiant. Ah, I’m so envious. How do you have such good skin? You stay up late filming, your meals are irregular, yet your skin is still flawless. I really want skin like yours…”

Rong Xu: “……”

Rosy and radiant… you might as well just say I’m glowing with post-sex bliss!

To avoid having his sharp-eyed assistant notice anything odd, Rong Xu got out of bed in the afternoon and went to the set with Luo Qi. She had originally wanted him to rest more, but he insisted on seeing the set doctor. After a checkup, the doctor said: “Everything is perfectly normal. Rong Xu is in great shape.”

Only then did Luo Qi finally feel reassured.

However, Rong Xu’s walking was a bit odd—not his posture, but his pace. Normally, he walked faster than Luo Qi, making her have to keep up. But today, he was noticeably slower.

The doubt in her mind deepened. After a long while, Luo Qi suddenly had a realization: “Oh right, didn’t Xiao Xu just recover from being sick? He must still be weak, that’s why he can’t walk quickly.”

Completely unaware of what his assistant was imagining, Rong Xu: “……”

That fall earlier in the day after getting out of bed had been due to a sudden tug at his lower back. After all, it was his first time experiencing that kind of expansion last night, so there was certainly some pain. No matter how much Qin Cheng had massaged him, there was no way his red and swollen area would fully recover so quickly.

But apart from that, his body didn’t hurt too much. After walking around for a bit, he felt mostly fine. He chalked it up to having a strong recovery ability, and thought last night had been relatively restrained (?), or maybe the preparation had been thorough. What he didn’t know at the time was that a certain man had stayed up the entire night massaging him.

He would only learn that later, during a different kind of intimate moment.

When Rong Xu arrived at the set, filming was still ongoing.

Today, Xiao Zitong had returned to continue shooting her scenes. Hers were relatively simple, without any major dramatic focus, so Director Xu had delegated the directing to a few assistant directors while he focused on casting the new male second lead.

Just like when “Makeup Flower Robes” had suddenly needed a third male lead, now “Silent” was urgently seeking a second male lead.

Normally, films like Makeup Flower Robes or Silent would have celebrities scrambling to join. But now, things were too rushed. Many actors wanted to participate but couldn’t fit it into their schedules.

Back then, getting Rong Xu for Makeup Flower Robes had been pure luck for Director Liu. But Silent hadn’t had the same luck. Director Xu, Qin Cheng, the producer, and a few others had spent the whole day discussing, but still hadn’t found a suitable actor.

It wasn’t that no one was available, but those who were either didn’t have the right image or lacked acting skills—Director Xu wasn’t satisfied.

While everyone else was panicking, only Qin Cheng sat calmly in the middle, sipping coffee, completely unbothered. His relaxed demeanor sharply contrasted with the anxious crowd.

When Rong Xu walked into the conference room and opened the door, the first thing he heard was Director Xu’s furious roar.

Smack!

The script in Director Xu’s hand slammed onto the table. The elderly man glared at the calm and composed Qin Cheng, shouting: “Qin Cheng! We’re all losing our minds here, and you’re just sitting there drinking coffee! And not only that—you drank my coffee! What’s wrong with you?! That was mine!!!”

Qin Cheng gently set down the white porcelain cup and looked up. “You were going to drink it?”

Director Xu froze. “Of course I was!”

Qin Cheng calmly replied, “Your coffee’s been sitting there for five hours. You didn’t touch it. You’re too wasteful, so I kindly helped you finish it.”

Director Xu: “@#￥@#￥@#￥#@！！！！”

Long used to his old friend’s sarcasm, Director Xu suddenly found himself calm in his frustration. He smiled and pulled out a chair, sitting beside the wildly popular actor. “We’ve known each other for years, Xiao Qin. How would you describe our relationship?”

Qin Cheng chuckled. “It’s good. Director Xu has a great temper. Very easy to work with.”

The moment the words left his mouth, not only the producer and staff, but even Director Xu twitched at the corners of their mouths. No one believed it. Still, Director Xu was a seasoned veteran. He thickened his skin and waved his hand. “Since we’ve got a good relationship, why don’t you help me out and take the role? You’ve been a supporting actor for Rong Xu before in Black Clouds, right? How about it?”

At the doorway, Rong Xu’s hand froze on the doorknob, staring at Qin Cheng in surprise.

Qin Cheng also turned and met his gaze. Their eyes locked for a moment. A flash of surprise flickered across Qin Cheng’s eyes, but in the next second, he turned to Director Xu and said, “No way.”

Rong Xu: “……”

Director Xu slammed the table in frustration: “You’re looking down on our Silent!”

Qin Cheng explained, “The role doesn’t suit me. I’m too tall—I’d overshadow Rong Xu. Also, I’m not really fit to play a student anymore. If I really had to, I could pull it off, but audiences wouldn’t buy it. Most importantly,” he paused and glanced subtly at Rong Xu before continuing, “most importantly, I’m flying to Milan tomorrow for an event.”

Qin Cheng wasn’t wrong. In Silent, the male second lead was just a supporting character. Having Qin Cheng play the role would be overkill. Besides, there was another important point: years ago, casting “Little Qin Cheng” (Lu Xiangbo) might have attracted audience interest. But if the real Qin Cheng took on the role, people might find it odd.

After all, since his debut, Qin Cheng had played every type of role—but never a student.

Not even at sixteen had he played one. And now, at twenty-seven, you want him to?

Imagining in his mind what that man would look like playing a student, Rong Xu couldn’t help but shiver. Not far away, Director Xu might have imagined the same thing, and he shivered as well.

But the issue still needed to be solved. Director Xu sighed and said, “So what should we do?”

Rong Xu stepped into the room. Qin Cheng’s fingers gently traced the rim of the white porcelain cup, his mouth speaking to the director, but his eyes never strayed from the young man.

“There are two things the crew can actually do. First, reduce the screen time for this character. Since he isn’t that important, the script can be adjusted accordingly. Second…”

At that moment, Qin Cheng suddenly saw Rong Xu pulling out a chair to sit down. When the young man sat, a pained expression flickered across his fair and elegant face. Qin Cheng immediately sat up straight. Only after Rong Xu was seated did he slowly relax, then turned to look at Director Xu and said, “Second, you don’t necessarily need to cast an actor — you could find a singer.”

Director Xu was stunned.

Qin Cheng’s lips curved faintly. “I remember the film’s theme song, Silent, is sung by Lin Xuan, right?”

That night, around 9 PM, Director Xu happily treated Qin Cheng to a meal to thank him. This time, he didn’t invite the whole crew — just a few core people: Qin Cheng, Rong Xu, Xiao Zitong, the producer, and the screenwriter. They all sat around one table and ate together.

During dinner, Xiao Zitong kept sneaking excited glances at Qin Cheng and tried multiple times to start a conversation. But Director Xu kept chatting with Qin Cheng the whole time, leaving her with no opening.

Xiao Zitong sighed heavily. “I didn’t get to ask God Qin for an autograph… If I had known he was coming, even if my face was smashed, I would’ve gone to the set!”

Hearing that, Rong Xu chuckled lightly. “Sister Zitong, do you really like Qin Cheng that much?”

“Like him? I super like God Qin!”

Rong Xu recalled many people he had met before and asked, “Because of Twilight Sound?”

Xiao Zitong shook her head fiercely and said with conviction, “Not because of Twilight Sound. It’s simply because God Qin is too handsome. With a face like that, why wouldn’t I like him? He’s basically a male god!”

After a pause, she suddenly realized she had just called another actor handsome in front of Rong Xu. Smiling, she quickly added sincerely, “Xuxu, you’re really good-looking too. Honestly, out of all my co-stars, you’re the best-looking.”

Rong Xu: “…”

Why did it feel like “handsome” and “good-looking” were two different things?!

During the meal, Director Xu even tried to get Rong Xu to drink, but Qin Cheng directly pulled his hand away. When the director complained, “Why won’t you let him drink?” Qin Cheng calmly said, “He’s not feeling well.”

Rong Xu’s ears instantly turned red. He lowered his head and quietly ate his food, pretending he hadn’t heard anything.

Wasn’t he unwell? His butt still hurt just sitting down!

Anyway, around 10 PM, Qin Cheng left the film set.

Before he left, everyone in the crew came to say goodbye one by one. Xiao Zitong finally got her autograph from Qin Cheng, like she had wished. When Rong Xu came to see him off, Qin Cheng opened his arms and pulled the young man into a hug.

Everyone around was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized — of course, Qin Cheng and Rong Xu had worked together before, they must be friends.

What they didn’t know was that, in front of everyone, Rong Xu had been tightly pulled into the man’s embrace. Qin Cheng slightly lowered his head, his warm breath brushing against Rong Xu’s ear as he whispered something. The young man’s face instantly flushed, and he quickly broke free from Qin Cheng’s hold.

After Qin Cheng officially left, Luo Xi curiously asked, “Eh? Xuxu, why is your face so red?”

Rong Xu’s lips twitched as he casually replied, “It’s a bit hot.”

Luo Xi nodded in confusion, still muttering, “But it’s a little chilly tonight… not that hot…”

Two days later, under Qin Cheng’s recommendation, Lin Xuan finally agreed to join the Silent production team. As the little king of pop music was about to arrive, many of the crew members were excited and began preparing early. As for Lu Xiangbo, he had already been taken to the police station and had plenty more problems to worry about. The unexpected events in the Silent film crew weren’t quite over yet.

Naturally, Luo Xi didn’t understand what exactly the man had whispered into the young man’s ear that night to make him blush so hard.

What he said was—

“I’m leaving now, Xuxu. Take good care of yourself. We… have a long future ahead of us.”