Mrs. Yan's birthday was coming up and Shen Jintai was very concerned. As more time passed, the deeper his feelings for her becomes. This year was her 50th, but she didn't plan to make a big deal of it. She only wanted to invite relatives and close friends to dinner.
Even if it wasn't a grand event, it still had to be taken seriously.
"If there is anything I can do, just mention it." Shen Jintai said.
Yan Qiuchi said: "We plan to hold a birthday party for her at home. Don't you know how to sing? I would like to ask you to sing a birthday song for her."
Shen Jintai was taken aback. Technically he could sing. The original owner could dance and sing very well. He had seen his past performances. He thought if it was only a birthday song, it shouldn't be too difficult to learn.
Shen Jintai nodded: "Okay."
The waiter came to serve the food, but he didn't leave. He glanced at Shen Jintai cautiously, and when he looked up again, he noticed Yan Qiuchi's stern eyes, so he quickly bowed and hurriedly left the room.
"Is it him? Is it him?" A colleague waiting outside asked in a low voice.
"It's really him! It's Shen Jintai!"
Their restaurant was very high-end, and occasionally they would get celebrities, but none have excited them as much as Shen Jintai.
With the combination of a high traffic idol and superb acting skills, Shen Jintai was now a prosperous existence in the entertainment industry. Since The East Palace was a national hit, his popularity had soared beyond any other actor in history. When it comes to Li Xu, there wasn't a person who didn't know who that was.
However, high-end restaurants have much stricter requirements for waiters. They weren't allowed to secretly ask for autographs or photos and disturb their guest's meals. It was strictly forbidden so the staff could only quietly poke and get excited.
"Who's the person dining with him? He's so handsome. Is he a star?"
"I saw the reservation name. His surname is Yan."
"He's not his target, right? After all Shen Jintai likes men."
"Really?"
They were all ordinary passersby who didn't know much about Shen Jintai, but they were excited anyways because they had run into such a big star, and he was in a middle of a love affair to boot! They couldn't help but gossip.
"The two of them are a good match. That man is really handsome!"
"Shen Jintai looks better in person. His face looks a bit bigger, and I really admire his skin."
Shen Jintai and Yan Qiuchi didn't eat long. They came out of the restaurant about half an hour later. When he came out, Shen Jintai had already put on his masks and lowered his head slightly behind Yan Qiuchi.
The clerks looked around nervously and excitedly. Shen Jintai was really good-looking. He had shiny, thick, jet-black hair and gorgeous eyebrows. He was also handsome and tall. When he walked past, he had a faint fragrance, and the aura of a big star!
The man that was in front of him was even taller and equally as handsome. One could tell that he was rich from a single look.
Finally, they came out!
Xiao Qi's hands were shaking from excitement. She prayed: 'God please let those two have lots of intimate interactions! Please, please!'
It was already nighttime. Yan Qiuchi looked around, seeming as if he was afraid of getting photographed.
Oh, hehehe.
Then Shen Jintai appeared in her camera. Under the night, the two of them were talking at the door. Yan Qiuchi suddenly stretched out his arms. Xiao Qi became so excited that she almost shouted hug him! Hug him! Just hug him!
Ah, they actually hugged!
Yan Qiuchi hugged Shen Jintai.
Thank god! That's enough, that's enough!
Shen Jintai didn't expect Yan Qiuchi to hug him. Fortunately, Yan Qiuchi was restrained. He just lightly gave him a hug, tapped his shoulder, and then let go.
"Be careful on the road." Yan Qiuchi said.
Shen Jintai nodded. Xiao Tang had already driven the car over, and he got in.
Xiao Qi put down her SLR and felt she could call it a day. She immediately copied all the videos she shot today to her phone and started editing and adding subtitles.
She made the headlines first: [Touhua is in a relationship! You'll never believe who the other party is!]
After typing, she deleted it and rewrote: [Old feelings are hard to break? Shen Jintai meets with Prince Yan at night!]
She felt that it was still not exciting enough. What she really wanted to write was: [A dog can't stop eating shit*. Shen Jintai will always remain a bitch*.]
*A dog can't stop eating shit (狗改不了吃屎) = AKA a leopard cannot change its spot. It a derogatory way of saying nature is hard to change.
*Clarity: double entendre as bitch can also be referred to as a female dog.
No, she must go home and think carefully!
She was moved to tears. Her hands were shaking from excitement as they pulled the handbrake. She turned on her headlights and turned the steering wheel. As her car was about to drive off, she saw two tall men walking towards her.
Xiao Qi was taken aback and hurriedly stepped on the brake. She stuck her head out the window and probed: "What are you doing?"
"Miss, someone wants to talk to you. Please get out of the car."
A bad omen appeared in Xiao Qi's heart. The tears of joy still hung from the corners of her eyes. She licked her lips: "Who are you and what are you going to do? If you don't get out of the way, I will run you over!"
As she said, she started the car again and drove slowly towards the two men. The two men stood still and didn't move.
Whoa, whoa whoa! They were so scary!
Xiao Qi immediately took out her phone. Before she had the chance to make a call, she heard someone knocking on her car window. She turned her head and saw that it was Yan Qiuchi.
"Miss Qi, after following me for so long, don't you want to take a photo?"
—
Shen Jintai was sitting in the car looking out at the throng of lights on the streets. While stopped at a red light, he asked Xiao Tang: "Did you pay attention on your way here? Were you followed by anyone?"
Xiao Tang: "I drove around a few times deliberately but didn't see anyone following."
He had paid great attention when he came since their team was alert to lunatics like Xiao Qi.
Shen Jintai said: "When I came to see Yan Qiuchi today, I always felt uneasy in my heart. I can understand why my fans are so hung up by this. Yan Qiuchi has become a black spot that cannot be mentioned."
Xiao Tang said: "Everyone all hate President Yan, but I can sympathize." After all, that chapter of Shen Jintai's life was the most disgraceful.
"I can understand their thoughts," Shen Jintai said: "It's just because of my relationship with Auntie Fang that I can't help but interact with the Yan family. Every time I meet with Yan Qiuchi, I have to sneak around like this. This doesn't seem to be viable long term."
Xiao Tang: "Then Brother Jin, what do you think?"
"I think if I should meet Yan Qiuchi more in public in the future. It'll let everyone know that the thing we had before is all the past and our relationship is good now. In this way, if there are lunatics like Xiao Qi maliciously making rumors, the fans won't be too surprised."
Xiao Tang thought for a bit and said: "I think that's a good idea. You're filming <Welcome Rain on a Spring Night> next so you'll inevitably run into President Yan. As long as you pay attention, these issues are easy to deal with. I'm just worried that things will be awkward when you run into him."
"That's not true," Shen Jintai said: "Yan Qiuchi is good at masking himself so our relationship has not been affected."
After he rejected Yan Qiuchi, despite Yan Qiuchi's affection barely decreasing, he was still restrained, which resulted in maintaining the amicable relationship. He felt that Yan Qiuchi was smart by not forcing the issue again. On the contrary, their relationship has become more harmonious after the confession. There always seems to be an ambiguity that floated between them. An ambiguity that cannot be broken through.
—
Xiao Qi was sitting in the car, her face completely pale. Yan Qiuchi sat next to her, holding her camera, and watched video after video. His white and slender fingers were particularly beautiful but in this moment, they seem as if they were used to strangle her.
Xiao Qi's eyes were still moist, but this time it was not tears of joy, but fright.
Yan Qiuchi was handsome. A faint smell of his cologne wafted from his body, and he was wearing a luxurious suit that made him look even more elegant. Such a man sitting next to her gave her an unbearable sense of fear and oppression.
The lights from the video lip up Yan Qiuchi's face showing a soft smile as he said: "There are quite a lot of shots."
Xiao Qi: "You... what do you want to do?"
"I also found someone to take a lot of photos," Yan Qiuchi's voice still maintained a gentlemanly demeanor. It was soft and gentle: "Of you."
Xiao Qi turned her head and looked at Yan Qiuchi.
"Despite receiving the lawyer's letter, you haven't relented and kept chasing and taking candid shots. This is all the evidence." Yan Qiuchi handed the camera to the person outside the car and then continued: "I have hired the most professional team of lawyers to handle this matter. They can easily bankrupt your entire family. Not to mention that state that you're in now, if I were to release this, can you imagine the repercussions?"
Xiao Qi reached out to grab her camera but stopped. She knew she could provoke Shen Jintai and Bai Qingquan, but her connections and abilities were not that great to provoke Yan Qiuchi. Tears were about to flow. Just a few minutes ago she was ecstatic when she captured the previous material but in the next moment it was instantly snatched away. This kind of feeling was so cruel it was better if she had never gotten the shots in the first place!
She was utterly miserable.
"I... I don't want to involve you. I... I'm just trying to photograph Shen Jintai..." she said.
"I'll give you two choices. Option one, make it clear what you want to do and take the things that needs to be taken out. You must pay fair compensation to Bai Qingquan and Shen Jintai. If you apologize properly, perhaps you can avoid jail time. Option two..."
"I'll do it!" Xiao Qi hurriedly said: "I... I still have some information on my computer. I... I'll turn it all in."
She gave a nervous look to Yan Qiuchi. She knew that whatever the second option was, it was not a good choice. She lowered her voice and said frustratingly: "I will do as you say."
Yan Qiuchi asked: "You finally got a picture of me and Shen Jintai. Are you that reluctant to hand it over to me?"
Xiao Qi looked up. She was wrong. She was absolutely wrong. She always thought that Yan Qiuchi was a gentlemen, a male god, but in reality he was actually a demon! She held back tears, nodded, and shook her head again.
"It seems like you're in a lot of pain." Yan Qiuchi said.
Xiao Qi felt that she really couldn't stand it anymore. Yan Qiuchi was so fucking oppressive, she felt like she couldn't breathe.
Yan Qiuchi: "I'll return the video to you."
Xiao Qi raised her head abruptly, tears flowed down: "I... I don't want it! I don't want it."
"But you need to." Yan Qiuchi said coldly: "You have to send it out."
—
Early in the morning of the next day, Weibo collapsed.
Several marketing accounts that had frequently interacted with the notorious Weibo account "Working Together to Destroy the Gold Powder" posted major news together, but this wasn't the news that Xiao Qi originally intended to post. It didn't contain any of Shen Jintai's upside down* or any of his black materials that she had carefully prepared for days.
*Reminder: upside down (倒贴) = refers to pay instead of getting paid. To put in resources when one expected to be on the receiving end of it.
There were only two pictures from the East Palace commemorative album. It showed Yan Qiuchi looking at Shen Jintai affectionately. The pictures were accompanied by a video clip of Yan Qiuchi standing on the side of the road, at night, waiting for someone. When the person he was waiting for arrived, it turned out to be a young man wearing a mask. The moment Yan Qiuchi saw that young man, he gave a beaming smile.
Title: [When the prince slapped his own face! No one can stop Shen Jintai's charm.]
[Insider news! Prince Yan's confession was rejected and Touhua did not eat grass*!]
*Reminder: eat grass (吃回头草) = metaphor for doing something that you are not willing to do again.
The author has something to say：
None of the gongs I write are bad! All of them are perfect good men!
Xiao Qi: It's too cruel! Yan Qiuchi, that devil! Wuwuwu!
Kinky Thoughts: Wow! Yan Qiuchi making the ultimate sacrifice. I'm in love!!! Yan Qiuchi I'm rooting for you now! You have my full support!