Perfect Divorce [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 27

Yuan Xingzhou couldn’t fathom what kind of logic led Ye Huai to make an anklet. He stared at it for a long while, wanting to find a pair of pajama pants to cover it before sleeping, but he was stopped.

“Don’t you like it? If you like it, look at it more.” Ye Huai was incredibly domineering, turning off the lights to sleep and then grumpily saying goodnight.

The threatening undertone in his voice was so heavy that Yuan Xingzhou didn’t dare change into long pants. He spent the night sleeping in his long T-shirt.

The next morning, Ye Huai unusually didn’t head out early.

“Get up, let’s go for a run.” Ye Huai woke Yuan Xingzhou up. He was already changed into sportswear and urged Yuan Xingzhou to get out of bed. “You went to bed at ten last night and still can’t get up in the morning? Are you a pig?”

Having slept soundly all night, Yuan Xingzhou was in a great mood. He stretched and retorted, “You’re the pig.”

The quilt was kicked aside, and his T-shirt had somehow rolled up to his waist, revealing a fair belly and long legs. Drowsily, Yuan Xingzhou reached down to pull his shirt back, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of his abdomen.

“Hey, my abs!” Yuan Xingzhou froze for a moment, lifting his shirt in pleasant surprise. “They’re back? They were almost gone a couple of days ago… Look, look!”

“I see them,” Ye Huai urged. “Hurry up and get dressed.”

“Are you going to teach me how to train my arms when we go out?” Yuan Xingzhou hopped off the bed with a grin and ran to change. Remembering the “pig” insult, he protested with a serious face, “I have abs; I’m definitely not a pig.”

“I was wrong,” Ye Huai actually nodded. “You’re not a pig.”

Yuan Xingzhou sensed there was a catch and squinted at him suspiciously.

Sure enough, Ye Huai added, “You’re Hermaphroditus.”

Yuan Xingzhou was stunned. “Who’s that?”

“From Greek mythology,” Ye Huai said sincerely. “The son of Aphrodite and Hermes. Satisfied now?”

Yuan Xingzhou didn’t know much, but he knew Aphrodite’s Roman name was Venus, the goddess of love and beauty. He figured Venus’s son must be quite handsome.

“At least you’re sensible,” Yuan Xingzhou snorted with satisfaction and went to change his shoes. The anklet slid down slightly, catching on his prominent ankle bone.

The two ran along the mountain path for a while. When they stepped out, the world was shrouded in a damp, thin mist; by the time they returned, the sun was high, and the mist had completely dissipated.

Everyone made do with breakfast and once again drew lots for tasks. Taking a lesson from yesterday, Yuan Xingzhou kept his mouth shut.

This time, the groups going out were Yin Fei and Yuan Cheng. The task was much easier: catching fish in the lake.

“Oh, I want to go too.” Yuan Xingzhou grew restless as soon as he heard about catching fish. He had loved playing in the water as a child but rarely had the chance. Although he could travel now, he was still a celebrity; it was hard to find a place so full of rustic charm without having to worry about fans or cameras.

The crew prepared waterproof waders and nets. Yuan Xingzhou mentioned wanting to go once, and when Ye Huai didn’t respond, he said it again.

Ye Huai glanced at him. “You want to go? To do what?”

Yuan Xingzhou: “To catch fish!”

Ye Huai: “Oh, to deliver clothes?”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

Tan Yanke, at the back of the line, glanced over and waved at Yuan Xingzhou. Yuan Cheng, walking in front, looked at Tan Yanke and then looked over here.

“Never mind, I’m not going,” Yuan Xingzhou changed his mind. “I’ll stay home peacefully.”

They were heading back tomorrow. Yuan Xingzhou only now realized that Yuan Cheng hadn’t made things difficult for him these past few days; they hadn’t even had any direct contact.

It was almost unbelievable.

Before coming, Yuan Xingzhou had nervously prepared himself, thinking about what to do if Yuan Cheng “subtly” attacked him or put on a fake show of “brotherly affection.” Now that the man wasn’t looking for trouble, Yuan Xingzhou intended to be sensible and avoid provocation to save himself from getting scolded.

He curled up on the sofa and turned to look at Ye Huai. “What are you doing?”

“Bombing fish,” Ye Huai said. “Want to play?”

He handed over the game console. Yuan Xingzhou took a peek; sure enough, the character on the screen was about to throw a bomb into a lake.

“I’ve already cleared the game, okay?” Yuan Xingzhou said, amused. “Have you been playing this lately? Are you just starting?”

Ye Huai gave an “un-huh.”

“You play, I’ll watch for a bit.” Yuan Xingzhou climbed up to sit on the sofa’s armrest, watching Ye Huai play.

Ye Huai was indeed a novice with poor gear. When Yuan Xingzhou had played Zelda, his progress on the first day was much faster than Ye Huai’s now.

But he could see that Ye Huai didn’t seem to follow the main plot much; his favorite activities were wandering around, picking mushrooms, bombing fish, digging for treasure chests, and… taking selfies.

In just the short time Yuan Xingzhou watched, Ye Huai had already taken four or five selfies. It was like “tourist check-in” photography; he had to commemorate every spot with a good view.

“Does it look good?” Ye Huai asked.

Yuan Xingzhou: “…” Don’t all the game characters look the same?

“…Looks good,” Yuan Xingzhou lied through his teeth, complimenting him, “So handsome. Even better with the mask on.”

Ye Huai looked at him with a strange expression.

Yuan Xingzhou stared back blankly.

“I’m asking you, does the girl look good?” Ye Huai squinted at him. “What are you thinking about?”

Yuan Xingzhou: “?”

Stunned, Yuan Xingzhou realized that Yin Fei and Ai Chi had finished changing and were walking toward them with smiles.

“Brother Zhou!” Yin Fei ran over in her rubber boots, splashing as she laughed. “I looked for you for ages last night! I heard from Allen that yesterday’s work was exhausting. Thanks for filling in for me!”

She was wearing a white hoodie today with two ponytails. With her rosy cheeks and lip gloss, she looked adorable.

Yuan Xingzhou smiled. “It’s nothing. Are you heading out now?”

“Yeah, want to come along?” After saying this, Yin Fei looked at Ye Huai. “Brother Huai should come too!”

“Brother Huai definitely can’t go!” Ai Chi, who had been grinning foolishly, got anxious and intervened. “The Great God has to cook. Great God, we’ll try to catch more. How are we eating for lunch?”

Ye Huai radiated cold air. “Raw, obviously.”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

“Sashimi?” Ai Chi took it seriously and said in surprise, “That works too. Raw fish is good, fresh…”

Ye Huai: “…”

“Just shut up.” Yin Fei nudged Ai Chi with her elbow. Seeing that Ye Huai was getting impatient, she waved. “Well, Brother Zhou, Brother Huai, see you later… Huh?”

She suddenly froze, staring at Yuan Xingzhou’s ankle. “What’s this? An anklet?”

Yuan Xingzhou had been sitting sideways on the armrest, his pant leg riding up a bit, revealing the leather ring on his ankle. His skin was a rare cool-toned white, making the black anklet especially striking.

Yuan Xingzhou had forgotten all about it. He looked down, his face instantly flushing. He hurriedly pulled back his leg, scrambling to pull his pant leg down to cover it.

Yin Fei’s expression changed instantly. Her eyes darted between him and Ye Huai. “Whoa, whoa, whoa…”

Yuan Xingzhou knew her “hidden CP fan” nature. His face turned beet red as he urged, “Hurry up and go!”

Yin Fei looked at him with a grin, her expression becoming “perverted” in an instant. “Hehehe—”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

“I guessed right, didn’t I?” Yin Fei used the corner of her eye to peek intensely at Ye Huai’s side.

Yuan Xingzhou often lurked in the “Huai-Zhou” CP topics and knew what kind of “NSFW” scenarios these fans would dream up. He felt a sudden surge of “shame-turned-anger.”

“Ai Chi!” Yuan Xingzhou shouted. “If you don’t drag her away, your lunch is gone!”

Ai Chi, totally confused but hearing the threat to his meal, immediately got excited. “Let’s go, let’s go! The director is rushing us!”

“Oh my, I’m satisfied, so satisfied! I already have the visuals in my head, Hahahaha!” Yin Fei walked out laughing, saying meaningfully to Yuan Xingzhou, “Brother Yuan, you guys have fun. No rush, lunch isn’t a priority!”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

“What was she talking about?” Ye Huai asked.

“Nothing,” Yuan Xingzhou fooled him with a red face. “…She was saying the leather ring you gave me looks nice.”

“Oh, that,” Ye Huai said. “I didn’t have tools on hand. When I get back, I’ll process it a bit for you so it matches everything.”

Yuan Xingzhou: “Huh?”

Does that mean I have to keep wearing it after we go back?

“Don’t worry,” Ye Huai said with confidence. “I guarantee that no matter the occasion, it will dazzle the eyes of all those dogs.”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

After Yin Fei and the other three left, Ma Yin’s group went to Building A to continue rehearsing. Only Li Yi and Sun Kai were left in the building cleaning up; the surroundings suddenly grew quiet.

Yuan Xingzhou tugged at his pant leg. Seeing Li Yi and Sun Kai busy moving around, he hesitated about whether to help.

He was very unaccustomed to others working while he rested—a habit likely cultivated from living with his grandmother. Sometimes, even if someone else was standing while he was sitting, he would feel uneasy.

“Don’t be too proactive.” Ye Huai seemed to know his thoughts. His eyes were fixed on the screen as he spoke. “If you’re too proactive, you’ll steal others’ spotlight, you know?”

Yuan Xingzhou was taken aback and looked at him in surprise. “Does that happen too?”

He knew that back when he was in the idol group, the others often said he loved to steal the spotlight or called him a “calculating bitch.”

Yuan Xingzhou had felt wronged at first, but since everyone said it, he reflected on himself. He later realized he did have some issues—in many situations, he was afraid of things getting awkward, so he would always actively jump in to catch a joke or keep things moving.

He didn’t know when he developed this habit. Back in school, when a teacher asked “Who wants to answer this?” and the class remained silent, Yuan Xingzhou would raise his hand to save the teacher from embarrassment.

After joining the group and appearing on shows, if the host cued everyone to cooperate or fans shouted for interaction and the members were slow to respond, Yuan Xingzhou would be the one to break the ice.

Actually, he didn’t have the desire to show off; sometimes he stepped up with a pounding heart. But since the members generally resented it, Yuan Xingzhou silently changed after being scolded a few times, eventually becoming the quietest one in the team during later shows.

“Does manual labor count too?” Yuan Xingzhou thought of the past and couldn’t help but say, “But I didn’t want to show off. Even in the group, I just…”

“You were afraid of the ‘cold field’ (silence), I know.” Ye Huai turned his face to look at him. “But so what if it’s silent? With so many people, you aren’t the only one embarrassed. What’s the team leader for?”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

“Whether it’s silence or an accident, the responsibility is shared; nobody cares that much. But if you step in to ‘save’ the scene, it’s different. You stand out, the cameras focus on you—how could people not hate that? If you meet someone narrow-minded and steal their spotlight once, they’ll resent you for three hundred years.” Having said that, Ye Huai rested his feet up. “It’s the same with work. What if someone specifically wants to show off how hard-working and enduring they are?”

On the other side, Sun Kai cleaned the tables and chairs while saying to the camera, “Ah, so many bowls… I’m going to die…”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

“Just sit still,” Ye Huai said. “If you dare go over there, I’ll ‘divorce’ you.”

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

With Ye Huai backing him up, Yuan Xingzhou bit the bullet and pretended not to hear.

Of course, he was still conflicted. He was afraid that after this segment aired, netizens would scold him for being “too lazy.” But on second thought, even if he did work, if the production crew’s “big scissors” cut it out, his effort would be for nothing anyway.

Besides, Ye Huai was right. When he took the initiative to swap with Yin Fei yesterday, everyone’s expressions had been very subtle.

If Yin Fei had agreed too readily, she probably would have been scolded by netizens for “not being able to handle hardship.” And the other male guests were in a tough spot—with Li Yi in the team, if they didn’t swap, they’d be seen as inconsiderate to women. If they did swap, they’d have to suffer on the mountain.

So a good intention doesn’t necessarily lead to a good result. Looking at it from another angle, he indeed appeared to be “showing off.”

It seemed laziness had its perks.

The sun gradually shifted to the south. Sunlight spilled through the clouds, warming the small sofa area.

Yuan Xingzhou gradually relaxed, tilting his head to look at Ye Huai. He remembered that when they were in the group, this man had never said he was bad. In fact, in several variety shows, it was Ye Huai who cued him to interact with the host.

Yuan Xingzhou had been immersed in self-pity at the time and hadn’t noticed much; he only discovered these details later through CP fan edits.

Outside, a light breeze blew, making the leaves rustle.

“What are you looking at?” Ye Huai turned his head. Sunlight skipped through the tips of his hair, creating little golden halos.

Yuan Xingzhou blinked. “Looking at you.”

Ye Huai: “…Look good?”

Yuan Xingzhou nodded vigorously. “Very good!”

Ye Huai made a speechless face and turned back, while Yuan Xingzhou couldn’t help but laugh, noticing that the man’s face seemed to have turned red.

At noon, Ai Chi and the others returned with two large buckets of fish, and Ye Huai made grilled fish for everyone. Yuan Xingzhou pretended to help in the kitchen, but in reality, he couldn’t do anything besides washing vegetables.

Ye Huai wouldn’t let him leave, yet he drove him away with great disdain, shooing him from the left of the kitchen to the right, and then from the right to the left.

Yuan Xingzhou felt he was losing face from being nagged. Midway through, he had an idea—while rolling up Ye Huai’s sleeves, he made a gesture as if to kneel and perform a hand-kissing rite, which successfully startled Ye Huai.

“Getting bold, aren’t you…” Ye Huai said with a dark face. “Did I feed you too much?”

“No, no.” Yuan Xingzhou laughed and begged for mercy. “I’ve never been full.”

But Ye Huai was right; Yuan Xingzhou also realized a small change had occurred between them. He no longer catered to and flattered Ye Huai as cautiously as he did at the beginning. He no longer felt that initial guilt toward Ye Huai, nor was he afraid of him getting angry.

Now they were more like friends—though they didn’t know everything about each other, their relationship was very good.

Yuan Xingzhou secretly credited this to the argument they had that day. And during the filming in the afternoon, he put a lot of effort into “arguing” again. After hard practice, the lead actors finally stopped having repeated NGs.

At six o’clock in the evening, the first short drama of Idol Love Season finally finished filming.

The guests had completed the first stage of their task. At the suggestion of the crew, everyone had a BBQ.

There were ready-made grills and charcoal here. Everyone joined in, sharing the work, grilling while they ate.

Someone went to the commissary to buy cola and juice, and the rum originally in the fridge was also brought out.

By nightfall, everyone was about eighty percent full. They lit a campfire in the middle of the courtyard and began the “campfire heart-to-heart” session—a staple of variety shows.

Everyone had to describe their impression of their “CP,” engage in appropriate business-like flattery, and consider whether they wanted to change partners for the next grouping.

Yuan Xingzhou and Ye Huai were complete outsiders, listening to everyone chat while they ate, until Yuan Cheng stepped up and became the “conversation killer.”

“I don’t know who will team up with me next time. But I know my ‘other half’—it’s always been there.” Yuan Cheng said this and turned around, taking a guitar from a staff member. “It’s music.”

Everyone: “…”

Everyone was quite embarrassed but had to nod in understanding. Someone then suggested he play a song.

Yuan Xingzhou suddenly remembered what Huo Yangqing had said—Yuan Cheng was about to release a single.

“Then I’ll sing a bit of my self-composed song,” sure enough, Yuan Cheng said. “This is a melody I thought of right when I first debuted. I hummed it in the group back then, but I never finished it.”

Yuan Xingzhou was a bit surprised. But when Yuan Cheng strummed the strings and started humming, he realized there was a problem.

The opening part… was composed by Yuan Xingzhou.

Back at one of their concerts, Yuan Xingzhou had been struck by inspiration during the “talk” segment and played a small snippet.

It was just one small part of one of his many original compositions. Yuan Xingzhou didn’t remember it clearly himself, but there were several shots in the CP fan videos showing him playing the guitar while Ye Huai, on the other side of the stage, turned back to look in his direction.

He and Ye Huai didn’t have many interactions, so almost every video included those segments of Ye Huai silently turning back to gaze at him.

Yuan Xingzhou thought Ye Huai must have been looking elsewhere, but having seen those clips so many times, he had a particularly deep impression of the music in them.

Yuan Xingzhou: “…”

This melody lasted only half a minute. After that half-minute, the entire “flavor” of the song changed.

Whether in lyrics or atmosphere, Yuan Cheng’s singing was a world apart from Yuan Xingzhou’s original inspiration. What the two expressed was not the same thing at all, so compared to what followed, there was a very obvious sense of fragmentation.

Yuan Cheng stated right at the start that this was his inspiration from before debut, likely to prevent Yuan Xingzhou’s fans from attacking him for plagiarism later—after all, who came first is just a matter of who speaks first.

And “Zhou-fans” (Yuan Xingzhou’s fans) could never win a fight against “Cheng-fans.” When the time came, Yuan Xingzhou might even be scolded for “falsely accusing” him.

Yuan Xingzhou was speechless. The ghostwriter Yuan Cheng found for the composition and arrangement was quite skilled; the following sections were clearly structured and rigorous. But that person’s expression wasn’t what Yuan Cheng was trying to convey. The theme of a song should run through the entire piece; cutting and pasting it like this made it neither fish nor fowl.

He didn’t know what the point of doing this was.

Yuan Cheng had clearly prepared carefully. After the song ended, everyone applauded. He looked at Yuan Xingzhou with a look of pride.

Yuan Xingzhou lowered his head and silently rolled his eyes.

“That’s incredible!” Ye Huai suddenly looked up at Yuan Cheng. “I didn’t expect you to improve so much. You’re not even out of tune anymore.”

Yuan Cheng was stunned, then deliberately exaggerated, “Don’t discourage me! I’m very nervous right now!”

“You’ve improved a lot.” Yin Fei poked the campfire with a stick and joined in with a smile. “I remember at STAR’s past concerts, you guys had quite a few ‘car crashes’ (vocal failures).”

Yuan Cheng: “…”

“True,” Ye Huai said. “We had too many appearances back then. No one practiced much when we went back—everyone relied on the tuning engineers anyway. The only one who truly didn’t go out of tune was Xingzhou.”

Yuan Cheng pursed his lips, his face looking a bit stiff.

Yuan Xingzhou hadn’t expected Ye Huai and Yin Fei to work together to lift him up, but it did feel like a bit of a relief.

“Not at all,” Yuan Xingzhou smiled and looked at Yuan Cheng. “I’ve been led out of tune by you guys before too—so far out I couldn’t pull it back.”

“Don’t count me in.” Ye Huai turned his head and protested, “I followed you very closely every time, okay?”

Yuan Xingzhou: “Ah?”

“Ahhhhhhh!” Yin Fei suddenly screamed, looking at Ye Huai with excitement. “Brother Huai, you were indeed looking at Zhou-zhou!”

Ye Huai nodded casually.

Yuan Xingzhou: “??”

“I knew it! I said so!” Yin Fei stomped her feet in excitement, saying to a bewildered Yuan Xingzhou, “During every performance! When Brother Huai wasn’t sure, he’d turn to look at you. But your stage positions were too crazy—you two were always back-to-back! They all said Brother Huai was looking at others…”

The production crew and the guests were clearly startled. Ye Huai also looked at Yin Fei in surprise, then showed a look of understanding.

“Calm down, calm down a bit.” Yuan Xingzhou hurriedly signaled Yin Fei with his eyes, thinking, We’re recording a show! You’re the main guests, little sister, why are you shipping CPs…

But Yin Fei had already lost it.

“My big ‘sugar’ (CP moments)… woohoo… my sugar,” Yin Fei said with tears in her eyes, both excited and sad. “I was one of the first to ship you two, but the ‘Arctic Circle’ (unpopular ship) was too cold… our sugar jar has been flipped over so many times.”

Yuan Xingzhou never expected things to develop this way. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He thought the main task tonight wasn’t to talk about himself; this guest was stealing way too much of the spotlight…

“Let your Brother Zhou play a song for you.” Ye Huai took the opportunity to add to the chaos, smiling as he patted Yuan Xingzhou and urged, “Be good, go get the guitar.”