5.16

Stuck in a feverish haze, Chen Yu uncomfortably tossed and twisted on the bed until someone picked him up and patted his back, cooling him down by pushing ice cubes into his parched mouth. Soothed by the familiarity of the deep voice that hushed, "Just rest, doll," he fell into a deep sleep.

When he next regained consciousness, Chen Yu glanced around to discover that Sun Ri wasn't in the room, but that was better for him, since the clock showed that it was about time to have a little conversation. In order to get his phone, he squirmed out of the blankets he was rolled up in and dug through his pants, which had been tidily folded and placed on a black sofa. Then, without noticing the effort Sun Ri had put in to emphasize how handy he could be, Chen Yu directly opened the personal chat group that he shared with the protagonist.

Apparently, Guo Ziyue was quite proud of his accomplishments, there was a note waiting for 'Longing_for_the_Moon' that was timestamped as having been sent the moment that the mainstream media channels began covering his story. The message from 'One_Reel_Guo_Ziyue' read, "Did you see the news? I've gotten some offers to appear in several shows in the past hour alone!"

Chen Yu refused to feed the star's ego, instead he bluntly demanded, "Is it true that Xiang Kai threatened you?"

Guo Ziyue had been celebrating with a group of his fair-weather friends in a private lounge of a popular nightclub, but when he noticed that his fan had replied to him, he immediately excused himself. Anyway, these people were cheap playthings, nothing like the one boy who had stood by him in his loneliest days.

As he stepped out of the club, however, the words that 'Longing_for_the_Moon' had written made him stumble. Why was he suspicious? Had he heard something? No, that wasn't possible, nothing in their previous interactions had ever suggested that he was even in the industry. Having convinced himself in this way, Guo Ziyue's apprehension was replaced with annoyance. Why was his supporter wasting time and not congratulating him?

Therefore, his answer was rather brusque. "Of course, are you doubting me?"

Sneering, Chen Yu dodged the question by asking, "You really hate Xiang Kai?"

Guo Ziyue wrinkled his brows and frowned. What was wrong with the boy? Why did he even care about Xiang Kai, wasn't he his fan? Nevertheless, reminding himself that 'Longing_for_the_Moon' had proven his loyalty, he pushed down his impatience and honestly responded, "Yes, I can't help but hate him for what he did to me. But that doesn't matter, Xiang Kai is finished anyway. More importantly, aren't you happy for me? How about we meet up on my next day off?"

Unfortunately, after the first four words, Chen Yu had stopped paying attention. Having gotten what he'd wanted, he curtly posted the comment, "I'm sorry, I'll be busy for a while. Good luck." then logged off to block further notifications. Although Guo Ziyue spent a few minutes confusedly staring at the abrupt end to their extraneous discussion, he soon returned to the club room, assuming that his fan must have rushed off because he'd become too excited at the idea of getting together with his idol in real life.

Back at Sun Ri's house, Chen Yu was about to turn off his phone when Sun Ri walked in, holding a cup of hot chocolate. Brightening at the sweet smell that floated in with the man, Chen Yu resolved, en, it seemed like his lover remembered the important things, so he would be more patient with the pervert from now on.

Relieved that the boy had finally woken up and amused by how the frozen face had visibly perked up at the promise of sweetness, Sun Ri sat on the bed and lifted Kai onto his lap to help him sip the drink. His gaze as he watched the small tongue lap at the hot drink was full of pampering and suppressed desire, until his eyes, which he had removed to prevent himself from reacting inappropriately, caught a glimpse of the phone flung among the bedcovers. A brief skim of the chat record on the screen that was still lit up caused his hands to clench.

Concealing the agitation in his heart, however, he calmly squeezed out, "You talked with Guo Ziyue?"

His poor doll had barely recovered from being sick and the first thing he'd done had been to rush to approach the scum who'd trashed his name? Was it the scum's fault that his doll had looked so pale when he came back?

By this point, Sun Ri had completely wiped out any recollection of the fact that the so-called scum was his own charge and, moreover, someone whom he had almost started an ambiguous relationship with.

At the inquiry, Chen Yu lowered his eyes, too lazy to bother expressing any sadness since he trusted that Sun Ri would fill in everything on his own. Sure enough, the handsome face sank.

Pressing his thin lips against the boy's temple, Sun Ri pleaded, "Doll, he's not worth your affection. Look, he's so useless, he doesn't even realize that you're Xiang Kai. If it were me, I would recognize you anytime, I would follow you anywhere, I would give you anything."

Despite being prepared, the tip of Chen Yu's heart shook at the man's declaration, he knew that his lover was sincere. In any case, he hadn't intended to punish Sun Ri by keeping him anxious about their relationship, so he didn't reject the proposal, raising wet eyes with a hint of longing toward the intent gaze that had been fixed on him all along.

Sun Ri wasn't a total fool, as soon as he sensed that his doll was considering it, he tenderly kissed the boy's lips and murmured, "Just let me take care of you, okay?"

With the tips of his ears turning red, Chen Yu shyly grasped the man's pinkie after some wavering, making Sun Ri laugh delightedly. While he knew that his doll hadn't agreed to be his yet, this tacit agreement to stay with him was far more than he had dared to hope for even a day ago.

Now the only thing he had to do was take care of the bugs around him...Remembering Guo Ziyue and the useless pest Shui Re Dian, Sun Ri lowered his eyes and gently combed out his doll's mussed hair. Whereas he had countless schemes to eliminate Guo Ziyue, he would have to restrain himself from ruining Shui Re Dian, he still remembered how kindly Kai had treated him at the wrap party. He didn't want to see his doll upset, especially not over someone else.

Thus, sometime later, when Chen Yu dozed off again, Sun Ri reluctantly got up to make several calls. Although matters would be simple if he dealt with his targets directly, because he didn't want to expose his ruthlessness to his doll and risk the boy distancing himself from him, he had to go through some intermediaries. Nevertheless, it took merely a few conversations for him to order that a top-class agent from Jiao Yang Media Holdings, Sun Jia's conglomerate, come to M Country to persuade Shui Re Dian into joining Fanxing, while Guo Ziyue's video clip was retrieved from his digital files and dispatched for testing to the national laboratory.

As for the influence required to issue these instructions, Sun Ri had boldly used his identity as Sun Jia's heir; since he had already invoked this qualification to bring Kai's doctor over, he figured he might as well continue to exploit it. In any case, he had a way to produce a son now.

Having launched his plans to shut out any troublesome elements and eagerly imagining having his doll all to himself, Sun Ri climbed back into the bed.

---

Early the next morning, a tall man strode determinedly out of M Country's airport. From head to toe, his tailored black suit, gleaming square glasses, and leather briefcase proclaimed that he was someone who stood at the top of the elites, and his cold face was very attractively clean-cut. Nonetheless, no one in the crowd dared to get within a yard of him, because not only did his whole body exude a knife-like aura, but so did the two well-dressed men who were following behind him.

This was Lawyer Kuang, the person whom Sun Ri had spoken to regarding Shui Re Dian. While the man did hold a law degree, he was recognized among the higher circles for his ability to solve any of his employer's problems through any means necessary, rather than for legitimately working in court. He was, in short, the type of lawyer who tended to view his education simply as a way to judge how to make something technically legal.

With his track record of successfully carrying out even the most difficult negotiations and deals, however, everyone at Jiao Yang treated him with the utmost respect, no matter what they whispered in private. As such, he was absolutely overqualified for the mission he'd been given this time and could have protested to some extent, but he had just agreed, partly due to his acquaintance with Sun Ri and partly due to the picture he'd been sent of Shui Re Dian.

With that image, he'd connected the actor to the one who had starred in the sole film he'd watched in the past decade—the man, who had been a teenager at the time, had played a child who could speak with animals and had various adventures with them. Despite the boy's somewhat clumsy skills, Lawyer Kuang remembered him for the genuine joy that had shone from his eyes. That ingenuousness had brought a refreshing breeze to his daily life of navigating hidden dangers, and when he saw that the same purity could still be felt from the man in the photograph, Lawyer Kuang didn't hesitate to rearrange his schedule so that he could meet those eyes with his own.

Thus, when the ringing knocker forced Shui Re Dian to crawl out of bed later that day, he was confronted with three intimidating men standing on his doorstep. After blearily rubbing apart his eyelashes that were stuck together from sleep for several seconds, he at last gathered his muddled brain enough to yawn out, "Have you got the wrong address?"

Wondering at why Shui Re Dian's slow reaction seemed oddly inviting, Lawyer Kuang's mouth twitched, but he frowned when he glanced down at the bare skin that was exposed by the thin nightrobe the man was wearing. Irritated for no reason, he motioned his guards to go back to the car, then stepped closer until he was a hand's breadth away from the startled face and crisply said, "No, I'm sure you're the right one."