After Dumping the Scumbag, I Ended Up with His "White Moonlight” - Chapter 12

When Qiu Yuyi returned with the freshly made curry pork chop, he found the young girl staring at his face with a deeply meaningful look and a strangely cryptic smile.

“He—here is your curry pork chop,” Qiu Yuyi stuttered. For some reason, his skin was crawling. He hesitated for a beat before placing the plate in front of her.

“Thank you, Gege!” The girl instantly wiped the smile off her face. She picked up her spoon and began to eat, her eyes darting around mischievously. Seeing Qiu Yuyi standing by, waiting for her feedback, she gave him a sweet grin. “It’s delicious! This is the best curry rice I’ve ever had.”

Relieved, Qiu Yuyi was about to turn away when the girl spoke again. “Gege, I watched the live stream earlier, you know.”

Qiu Yuyi: “???”

You watched the stream, so what? He was genuinely confused.

The girl giggled. “Gege, you and my son—cough, I mean, you and my Di’an-gege are roommates, right?”

“Y-yes, we are.” Qiu Yuyi felt a sudden wave of nerves. There was something undeniably unsettling about the way this young girl was looking at him.

“Hehe, I see.” The girl glanced at Xia Di’an, who was not far away. Her eyes twinkled as she raised her voice slightly. “Gege, I will support you two forever!”

Qiu Yuyi: “???”

“Tha—thank you?” He realized with profound clarity that he could no longer keep up with the logic of today’s youth. He knew every word she was saying, but together, they made absolutely no sense to him.

Before she left, she begged for a photo with both Qiu Yuyi and Xia Di’an. Qiu Yuyi tried to let her stand in the middle, but she shook her head vehemently and insisted he take the center spot. Unable to win the argument, he stood between them while Hu Shasha used the girl’s phone to snap a picture.

As the day progressed, more guests arrived. Unsurprisingly, almost all of them were fans of Xia Di’an or Shen Jiashi. A few trainees from various agencies signed the necessary agreements and checked into the second-floor rooms.

For the safety of the celebrity cast, the production team carefully screened the overnight guests, ensuring most had some tie to the industry. Every guest signed a contract promising not to harass the stars. Furthermore, the door leading from the second floor to the third-floor private quarters was kept locked. There were six keys in existence—one for each guest.

“Shao Guang” opened at noon and closed at 8:00 PM. Outside of those hours, the cast was free to do as they pleased, with the production staff taking over the facility’s management. Even so, Lin Xuemeng, who had spent the entire afternoon in the kitchen, was so exhausted she could barely stand straight.

“This is too much. I have to sit down,” Lin Xuemeng said, clutching her lower back. Cao Ziping quickly placed a cushion behind her as she lowered herself into a chair.

“Sister Xuemeng, how about I handle the cooking tomorrow?” Qiu Yuyi asked with concern.

Lin Xuemeng gave him an amused look while massaging her waist. “And you think you won’t be tired? Don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine after a good night’s sleep.”

“But—”

“I’ll help Sister Lin in the kitchen tomorrow as her assistant,” Hu Shasha chimed in.

Lin Xuemeng shot her a knowing, half-smile. “Fine. As long as you don’t mind the grease and smoke ruining your complexion.”

“I’ll help too, as long as I don’t have other tasks,” Qiu Yuyi added.

It was settled. It was now 8:00 PM, and everyone was both drained and starving. Since Lin Xuemeng’s team had lost the game during the live stream, they were technically responsible for dinner. However, seeing her state, they all agreed to just have a simple hot pot.

After dinner, they played Rock-Paper-Scissors to decide who would do the dishes. Hu Shasha lost. Her round face scrunched up, and she looked at the others with pleading eyes.

Cao Ziping didn’t have the heart to make a young girl wash that many dishes alone. “Shasha, I’ll help you.”

Hu Shasha’s eyes lit up, but then she hesitated. “Brother Cao, you’ve been busy all day. I should really do it myself.” She said the words, but her eyes drifted toward Qiu Yuyi.

Qiu Yuyi: “…”

Noticing the look, he rubbed the bridge of his nose and felt forced to speak. “I’ll help you.”

“Oh, thank you, Brother Yi!” Hu Shasha agreed instantly.

Qiu Yuyi felt a headache coming on. In truth, he would have preferred to wash all the dishes alone rather than work with her. He couldn’t shake the feeling that Hu Shasha had been trying to stick to him like glue since their very first meeting.

Cao Ziping and Lin Xuemeng headed upstairs to rest. Shen Jiashi was chatting with Xia Di’an, who was casually playing with his phone and offering only occasional responses. As Qiu Yuyi stood up to carry a stack of plates to the kitchen, Shen Jiashi looked up and smiled. “Thanks for the hard work, you guys.”

Qiu Yuyi nodded. His gaze accidentally caught Xia Di’an’s. Xia Di’an looked up, his expression unreadable. “I’ll wait for you here.”

Wait for me? For what? Qiu Yuyi didn’t understand, but he didn’t question it. He simply nodded and headed into the kitchen.

“Brother Yi,” Hu Shasha said, leaning in as she washed a plate. “How long have you and Brother Xia known each other?”

“Hmm?” Qiu Yuyi looked at her. “We only officially met when the show started.”

“Liar,” Hu Shasha pouted, clearly unconvinced. “I noticed it from the start—Brother Xia is exceptionally good to you.”

Exceptionally good to me? Qiu Yuyi remained silent. He could tell that Xia Di’an treated him differently than the others. Thinking about it made him feel a bit dazed. While he didn’t hate Xia Di’an and certainly didn’t blame him for Shen Nian’s actions, he had wanted to avoid any deeper connection. Yet, after these few days, he realized that being friends with Xia Di’an might actually be quite nice.

It took about twenty minutes to finish the dishes. When Qiu Yuyi returned to the lobby, Shen Jiashi was gone. Only Xia Di’an remained, sitting on the sofa with his head down, focused on his phone.

At the sound of footsteps, he looked up and asked softly, “All done?”

Qiu Yuyi nodded.

“Let’s head up, then.”

“Oh, okay,” Qiu Yuyi followed. He still didn’t quite grasp why Xia Di’an had bothered to wait for him. Behind them, Hu Shasha followed with a cryptic expression.

The moment they entered the room, July pounced on them. Having been neglected all day, the pup whimpered and scratched at their legs, looking utterly dejected. Xia Di’an scooped him up gently, and Qiu Yuyi leaned in to stroke the dog’s head.

Suddenly, Xia Di’an let out a soft chuckle. Qiu Yuyi looked up in confusion.

“Look at us,” Xia Di’an said, a playful glint in his eyes as he pointed to July, who was burying his face in Xia Di’an’s chest. “Don’t we look like a family of three?”

Qiu Yuyi’s hand froze on July’s head. He pretended he hadn’t heard a word. “I’m going to shower first. I want to sleep early tonight,” he said, shifting the subject awkwardly.

He hurried into the bathroom. Xia Di’an didn’t move, standing still with the dog in his arms, lost in thought.

The Next Day.

None of the six guests made it downstairs until nearly noon.

“I heard a guest visitor is arriving today?” Cao Ziping yawned, looking sluggish. “Once you hit a certain age, you really can’t pull all-nighters anymore. Back in school, I could play games until dawn and still be full of energy for class the next day.”

Lin Xuemeng shot him a sharp look. Cao Ziping immediately realized his mistake—she was forty, five years his senior.

“Brother Cao, you went back to your room early last night. Why are you so tired?” Qiu Yuyi asked, trying to change the subject. Cao Ziping gave him a look of pure gratitude.

“Insomnia. I didn’t fall asleep until dawn,” Cao Ziping sighed. “I can’t sleep in new beds. It’s been like this since I arrived.”

Hu Shasha appeared in an avocado-green dress that made her look quite striking. She had shed her earlier timidness and gave Lin Xuemeng a sweet smile. “Sister Lin, please look after me today! If I do anything wrong, feel free to scold me.”

Lin Xuemeng eyed her up and down. “I wouldn’t dare. But you might want to change. The kitchen grease will ruin that dress in minutes.” Hu Shasha’s smile faltered, but she didn’t take the advice.

Xia Di’an leaned quietly against Qiu Yuyi’s side. Qiu Yuyi caught the scent of his own shower gel on the man and felt a slight blush creep up his face. For the last few days, Xia Di’an had been using all of Qiu Yuyi’s toiletries while his own remained packed in his suitcase. Qiu Yuyi wasn’t stingy, and he didn’t think a superstar like Xia Di’an was trying to save money; it was just a bit disorienting to smell the same fragrance on both of them.

Just then, the Director signaled that the guest had arrived. In each season of Leisure Time, a “flying guest” would visit for about a week.

Qiu Yuyi looked toward the door with curiosity. But as the figure pushing a suitcase came into view, his entire body went rigid. The smile on his lips froze.

Xia Di’an lazily lifted his eyelids to glance at the door. His face darkened instantly. His gaze, now deep and cold, snapped toward Qiu Yuyi.