Chapter 25

Lu Tingchao wasn't entirely sure if entrusting Su Ningyu with the task of delivering flowers was a reliable idea.

But everything on Zhuang Ji’s end remained quiet. Even after Lu Tingchao happily finished his meal, played with Lu Doudou in the children's play zone for over an hour, and had fully digested everything before going to bother Mo Lingnan, there was still no news.

So Lu Tingchao deduced that Su Ningyu must have handled it well.

Zhuang Ji was probably quite pleased.

All in all, it was a good outcome.

Su Ningyu’s message arrived a little after 11 p.m., confirming the next day’s variety show schedule and the assistant’s duties.

Su Ningyu asked in the message, “Should I come over tomorrow morning to help you with your luggage?”

Lu Tingchao: “Ah…”

Lu Tingchao, curled up on the sofa, secretly playing on his phone, glanced at Mo Lingnan upon hearing this.

Under the warm yellow light, the man, dressed in a robe, was reviewing a report that had just arrived from the company.

Lu Tingchao thought Mo Lingnan was the most dedicated CEO he had ever met.

He neither overacted like Zhuang Ji nor relied entirely on his family like Fei Xiuqi.

Perhaps it was a habit from his previous work, but Mo Lingnan was incredibly charismatic when he worked.

Lu Tingchao hesitated for a moment: “Never mind, don’t come to the previous address. I’ll send you a new one, and we’ll ‘rendezvous’ there.”

Su Ningyu: “…”

Su Ningyu sent a confused cat meme: “Alright, Boss Xiao Lu. Meeting up is fine, but we’re not smugglers, so ‘rendezvous’ sounds a bit odd.”

Oh, right.

Lu Tingchao ruffled his own hair: “Don’t call me ‘boss’ on set. My status is too low; it’ll seem strange.”

Su Ningyu: “Then what should I call you?”

Lu Tingchao had no idea either.

Su Ningyu: “How about Teacher Lu? I see other assistants call their stars that.”

Lu Tingchao: “I… guess that’s fine.”

Truthfully, Lu Tingchao had never been called “teacher” before.

After all, his status was truly, truly, truly insignificant.

The most the director ever said to him was: “Hey, you, stand over here.”

How could he possibly deserve to be called “Teacher Chao Chao” by a top-tier university genius? QAQ

But Lu Tingchao still felt a small thrill.

The liquid assets under Zhuang Ji’s name had been transferred to his account just two hours earlier.

Lu Tingchao declared grandly: “Anyway, buddy, do a good job, and Teacher Lu will give you a raise! We’ll pay you the highest rate!”

On the other end of the phone, Su Ningyu let out a low chuckle.

Then, a clear, young man’s voice came through the phone, magnetic and gentle: “Understood, Teacher Lu. I’ll work hard… really hard.”

Lu Tingchao hung up.

Su Ningyu leaned against the wall outside the hospital room.

The light stretched his shadow as he looked down at his faded sneakers.

Suddenly, the nurse who had shown him in earlier spoke up: “Oh, why are you still here?”

Su Ningyu smiled gently: “I’m about to leave. I just stepped out.”

Su Ningyu paused, then said softly: “I wanted to stay a bit longer, but the two people in the room seemed to be at odds. The atmosphere felt very tense…”

“Tense? You should have seen it earlier.”

The nurse, caught off guard, easily spilled the details: “Jiang Rong came with the patient’s mother. The patient probably didn’t want to say anything in front of his family. The moment his mother went home, he tried to kick Jiang Rong out.”

Su Ningyu feigned surprise: “But don’t the rumors online say they’re a couple? I’ve seen their CP trending everywhere.”

The nurse: “Ugh, exactly! I used to ship them too, but my ship sank in a second. It seems Jiang Rong is truly devoted to Actor Zhuang—she came to check on him, cried, peeled apples for him, and refused to leave no matter what.”

Su Ningyu played along: “So dedicated.”

“Too bad Zhuang Ji wasn’t having any of it!”

The nurse clicked her tongue. “From start to finish, he only said one thing to Jiang Rong. I heard it when I went in to change his IV.”

Su Ningyu asked curiously: “What was it?”

“Well…”

The nurse hesitated, but Su Ningyu’s appearance was so innocent and harmless, and getting firsthand gossip about the entertainment industry was just too juicy to resist.

The nurse said: “Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Su Ningyu looked sincere: “I promise.”

The nurse: “I heard Zhuang Ji tell Jiang Rong to leave because Chao Chao wouldn’t want to see her.”

Su Ningyu’s expression clouded slightly.

The nurse didn’t notice and leaned in closer, asking: “You must be a friend of Actor Zhuang, right? His eyes lit up the moment he heard you were sent by Mr. Lu. Back when I was his fan, he didn’t even light up that much when he won his Best Actor trophy.”

Su Ningyu didn’t miss a beat and said leisurely: “Indeed.”

The nurse: “Then do you know who Chao Chao is? When he first woke up from his coma, Zhuang Ji kept calling that name too.”

Su Ningyu’s lips curved into a slight smile: “I thought you said your fandom collapsed and you’re not his fan anymore?”

The nurse: “Oh, well, even if I’m not a fan, I can still ship! If he’s still thinking about this person even while in a coma, it must be true love, right? This time, I bet this one’s for real!”

Su Ningyu: “…”

Su Ningyu offered the kindest, most sincere smile of the evening: “Thank you for your help today, but I really don’t think you should ship this new pair.”

The nurse: “Huh?”

“Because their love is already dead.”

Su Ningyu stood up. “It died in the empty, draining days and nights, in decadence and extravagance, and in the foolishness of Zhuang Ji and Jiang Rong.”

His long legs strode forward, his faded jeans a stark contrast to the VIP suite’s plush carpet.

“Isn’t the world fond of self-aware ruin?”

Su Ningyu said, “If I were to recommend, I’d suggest you keep stanning Zhuang Ji and Jiang Rong. Their CP is still trending; fans can always find sweetness from every angle. Unlike the pair you just mentioned…”

The nurse: “What?”

Su Ningyu smiled: “By the time Zhuang Ji looks back, he won’t even find traces that the two ever loved each other.”

The elevator doors opened.

Su Ningyu waved his hand and said softly, “Actor Zhuang, isn’t that right?”

The nurse: "…!!!"

The nurse turned around in shock.

The ward door was slightly ajar, unnoticed until now.

Zhuang Ji, in his hospital gown, stood there looking pale and devastated, as if he had been there for quite some time.

Though the two were far apart.

As Su Ningyu waved and left, the nurse clearly saw Zhuang Ji sway, like the most ordinary leaf about to be carried away by the autumn wind.

*

Meanwhile, Lu Tingchao, who had been blasting the AC, watching movies, and eating potato chips, was finally annoyed by the 163rd phone call.

Changing his number had completely stopped working.

Frustrated, Lu Tingchao turned off his phone, hugged his potato chips, and walked barefoot across the living room to bother Mo Lingnan, who was sitting at the desk nearby.

Mo Lingnan’s spacious apartment had an open layout connecting the living room and study, a minimalist design—just a few steps across the carpeted step—

Lu Tingchao cheerfully annoyed Mo Lingnan: "Chao Chao peeking—"

Due to international business, Mo Lingnan occasionally had overseas calls.

Just as Lu Tingchao popped his head over from beside the desk, his hair a mess,

He saw the focused gazes of everyone in the video conference, all dressed in suits.

And among those gazes, his own one-of-a-kind messy self.

Lu Tingchao: "..."

Lu Tingchao quickly ducked back down and muttered stubbornly, "Pretend I was never here."

A large hand wrapped around his waist from behind.

With a slight tug, Lu Tingchao was pulled into the arms of the man in the office chair.

The air conditioning was set very low.

But Mo Lingnan’s embrace was still warm.

Before Lu Tingchao could react, he heard Mo Lingnan say something in English to the meeting attendees, then turn off the camera, exit the meeting, and shut down the screen.

Lu Tingchao blinked, wriggling in Mo Lingnan’s arms: "Aren’t you doing business anymore?"

Mo Lingnan frowned: "Sit properly."

Lu Tingchao flipped over like a pancake, straddling his lap and facing him, resting his hands on Mo Lingnan’s shoulders, speaking defiantly: "Tell me, did I disturb you? Are you going to scold me now?"

Mo Lingnan: "..."

Mo Lingnan sighed: "Yes, and I’m also going to punish you."

Lu Tingchao gasped, horrified: "Mo Lingnan!"

Mo Lingnan held Lu Tingchao’s waist with one hand and pressed a button on the side of the chair with the other.

The previously upright chair tilted back slightly, causing Lu Tingchao to practically fall into his embrace.

Mo Lingnan raised his hand.

Lu Tingchao instantly went on alert: "No spanking my butt again!"

"Just getting water."

Mo Lingnan’s arm reached around Lu Tingchao, taking a cup from the desk. A faint tea fragrance drifted past his nose—

And then, just moments later.

It passed between their lips.

It was the astringent taste of honeysuckle.

Mo Lingnan kissed gently but gave him no chance to escape.

Their large size difference allowed him to hold the smaller man by the waist and the back of his head, completely enveloping Lu Tingchao in his space.

Only when he felt Lu Tingchao go weak, his hands pushing weakly and his balance tipping forward,

Did Mo Lingnan loosen his grip slightly—

Lu Tingchao helplessly leaned against his chest and shoulder.

Someone who never worked out growing up naturally couldn’t have good lung capacity.

Yet he was still all talk.

"Ugh, it’s awful, this horrible honeysuckle,"

Lu Tingchao declared, "I’m tossing it all tomorrow."

Mo Lingnan’s voice was already rough. His arm moved dangerously, but the man in his arms remained oblivious.

Mo Lingnan said, "Oh? Then what should I drink?"

The prey gestured and complained: "You could drink boba with me. Just one cup doesn’t meet the delivery minimum, and Doudou can’t drink it anyway. One for me, one for you. When new releases drop, I can try both—"

"Not enough."

The hunter caught his prey.

Mo Lingnan wrapped his arms around Lu Tingchao, pulling him close, "Chao Chao, these aren't enough."

Lu Tingchao: "Huh..."

This slow-witted prey finally realized the danger.

Lu Tingchao tried to wriggle out of Mo Lingnan's embrace again, but all escape routes had been sealed.

A continuous stream of kisses rained down from the one holding him.

Mo Lingnan coaxed softly into Lu Tingchao's ear, "Chao Chao, were the peach blossom wine glutinous rice balls delicious?"

Lu Tingchao, bewildered by him, managed an "Ah," and said, "Y... yes, delicious."

Mo Lingnan asked, "Sweetheart, was the sweet and sour pork tenderloin delicious?"

Lu Tingchao: "Ah..."

Mo Lingnan: "Do you like the duck blood curd stew and scallion lamb stir-fry?"

Lu Tingchao had already gone limp; pinned against the chair, he had to reach out and wrap his arms around Mo Lingnan's neck, mumbling incoherently in his own defense, "I like them, but..."

But...

Lu Tingchao forgot what he was going to say.

Because Mo Lingnan kept kissing him, constantly interrupting his thoughts, calling him baby, darling, sweetheart nonstop.

Mo Lingnan asked, "Then does Chao Chao love me?"

The man beside him did not answer.

Traces spread from the study to the master bedroom.

Only a small lamp was lit by the bed, illuminating Lu Tingchao's serene and well-behaved sleeping face.

Turns out, when he's asleep, he isn't nearly as restless as during the day, even the covers are pulled up tightly.

Seven years later.

He finally had the chance to have Lu Tingchao sleeping peacefully by his side.

Mo Lingnan lowered his head and kissed Lu Tingchao's forehead, then reached out to turn off the light. But just as the light was about to go out, the phone on the nightstand vibrated silently.

It didn't wake the person beside the pillow.

Mo Lingnan recognized that number.

He tucked the covers around Lu Tingchao again, watched as the call ended on its own, but after just a moment, it called again.

Mo Lingnan picked up the phone and quietly pushed open the bedroom door.

The traces from earlier hadn't been cleaned up yet; Mo Lingnan straightened the fallen cushion and the decorative items that Lu Tingchao had grabbed and messed up. When the fifth call came, he answered—

The voice that had appeared countless times on screen, in ads, and variety shows now sounded particularly desolate and dejected, with obvious panic and tentative probing, "Mo Lingnan! Chao Chao didn't come home, is he with you?!"

Mo Lingnan picked up the last cushion.

He walked to the desk, joining the Patrick Star cup and SpongeBob cup together to form a complete pattern, then spoke, "Actor Zhuang, in what capacity are you asking, as an ex-husband?"

Zhuang Ji fell silent on the other end.

Mo Lingnan scoffed, "Forgot, you're not. Zhuang Ji, you just played house with Chao Chao, now the show's over, everyone should go home."

The person on the other end of the phone sounded muffled and trembling; Mo Lingnan had seen many similar situations, usually patients requiring oxygen or monitors had voices like this.

Drawing on his professional background, Mo Lingnan didn't want to be hard on a patient and held back the rest of his sentence: "Forget it, you should rest well..."

"We just had a misunderstanding!"

There was an indescribable pain in Zhuang Ji's voice, a pain that assailed him constantly, making every word seem to carry blood, "Mo Lingnan, Chao Chao and I just had a misunderstanding. Tell him, I'm waiting for him at home, I'll always wait at home..."

Mo Lingnan: "Chao Chao is asleep."

Mo Lingnan's tone was calm, leisurely, and upon closer listening, even held a note of satisfaction.

Mo Lingnan asked, "Zhuang Ji, do you understand now?"