They had an entire afternoon to waste, but after several rounds, Qi Bailu still felt a wave of nausea. Part of it was the gnawing hunger in his stomach from skipping lunch; the other part was Zheng Kunyu’s doing—he had truly come close to doing him in on that bed. Qi Bailu lay there prone, only finding the strength to lift a hand and wipe the sweat from his brow after a long while. However, with Zheng Kunyu’s entire weight still pressing down on him, his chin ached against the mattress, and even the simple motion of wiping his forehead was a struggle. Eventually, Qi Bailu exerted himself to drag a pillow over, buried his face in it, rubbed against the fabric twice, and then went still.
Normally, Qi Bailu would have ordered Zheng Kunyu to call for food, but right now, he didn't want to speak to him at all. Zheng Kunyu seemed even less inclined to talk, maintaining that rigid, back-hugging posture for a long time, to the point where Qi Bailu thought he had fallen asleep on top of him. Finally, unable to bear the hunger any longer, Qi Bailu reached out to fumble for his phone on the nightstand. Ignoring the fact that Zheng Kunyu was watching from behind, he opened a delivery app to order a meal.
In the middle of this, a WeChat notification from Cheng Wenhui popped up. He tapped into the social media app to handle the message. As he was typing a reply, he paused and turned his head to look at Zheng Kunyu’s face. As expected, Zheng Kunyu’s eyelids were lowered, his gaze fixed on the phone screen, his expression veiled by his lashes. Qi Bailu had nothing to hide; he turned back and continued typing, letting him watch. However, Zheng Kunyu had undoubtedly seen Ruan Qiuji’s name in his chat list.
The most recent exchange between the two of them was from yesterday. After Qi Bailu had returned home, Ruan Qiuji had sent a perfunctory message asking if he’d arrived safely, mentioned that he would be visiting the set in Xiamen in April, and then they had chatted casually for "a bit." Of course, when Qi Bailu looked up, he realized that this "bit" had lasted over half an hour.
Qi Bailu ordered Beijing Roast Duck. Since he would be in Xiamen for three or four months, he might not find such an authentic taste there. Just as he was about to place the order, he hesitated for a second, then lightly tapped the screen to add another portion. This one was for Zheng Kunyu.
The moment the payment went through, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and gripped his phone. Qi Bailu silently but forcefully jabbed his elbow back into Zheng Kunyu’s ribs, but Zheng Kunyu was stronger. He clamped down on Qi Bailu’s wrist with one hand and quite brutally wrenched the phone away with the other. The grip was agonizingly tight, so Qi Bailu didn't try to snatch it back. He watched as Zheng Kunyu held the phone with one hand, his thumb sliding across the screen as he opened the chat history with Ruan Qiuji.
The last message was a mutual "goodnight." Scrolling up, they were discussing a Western film they had watched yesterday. Further up were photos of food Ruan Qiuji had taken while out for a late-night snack, telling him they should go try it together when they had time, as there was a good skating rink near the restaurant.
Qi Bailu watched the text slowly scroll up and down. There had never been anything untoward sent between him and Ruan Qiuji, but in Zheng Kunyu’s hands, those mundane pleasantries seemed to transform into evidence of an affair. Qi Bailu’s ears flushed red—not just from embarrassment, but because Zheng Kunyu’s hold on him was too tight, and their lower bodies were still pressed together without any barrier.
Zheng Kunyu’s finger stopped on two rarely used emojis: a "kiss" and a "cute" face. Zheng Kunyu also saw Qi Bailu’s explanation of "sent by mistake," paused for a few seconds, and then continued scrolling up until he had read every single record.
The air in the room remained stagnant for a long time. Pressed down by the other man, Qi Bailu felt his chest tighten and his heart race, his body tensed as he waited for his sentence. But Zheng Kunyu merely closed the app, clutching the phone in his palm. After a long while, he rolled off and lay face-up beside Qi Bailu. Qi Bailu’s entire body was nearly numb from lying prone; he shifted his eyes to look at the man’s face. Zheng Kunyu didn't look back. He closed his eyes briefly, then reopened them to stare intensely at Qi Bailu’s face.
If looks could bite, Qi Bailu’s bones would surely have been ground to dust. In the past, perhaps Qi Bailu could have been forced to use his body as compensation, but looking at Zheng Kunyu’s current gaze, it was clear he didn't even want to touch him anymore.
Now, both of them had their own reasons to be angry. After a moment of confrontation, Qi Bailu reached out for his phone. Zheng Kunyu didn't budge. Unable to pry his fingers open, Qi Bailu pulled at his arm and said, "Give it back to me."
Zheng Kunyu sat up, one hand resting on his knee, looking at him coldly. Even if one was used to the other’s body, being naked in a moment like this still brought a sense of shame. Qi Bailu pushed his hand away, leaned against the headboard, and grabbed his bathrobe to throw it back on. Just as he tied the belt at his waist, Zheng Kunyu raised a hand. The slap wasn't unexpected; Qi Bailu instinctively turned his head to dodge, but the anticipated sound never came. Just as the blow was about to land, Zheng Kunyu clenched his hand into a fist and forcibly pulled back his strength in mid-air, his hand dropping back onto the sheets.
With his shoulder slanted, Qi Bailu caught Zheng Kunyu’s gaze out of the corner of his eye. For a moment, Zheng Kunyu likely felt a genuine murderous intent, wishing Qi Bailu were dead.
Even if he had no involvement with Ruan Qiuji, he had previously provoked Zheng Kunyu by saying "he likes me." In that regard, Qi Bailu had a guilty conscience, not to mention that he truly had felt a spark for Ruan Qiuji. Compared to physical betrayal, mental wandering was perhaps harder to endure. A man as proud as Zheng Kunyu had likely already executed him a thousand times over in his mind.
Qi Bailu’s lips moved, but before he could speak, Zheng Kunyu raised his hand and viciously hurled the phone onto the floor. The device hit the ground with a sharp, jarring crash like a stone striking pavement. Qi Bailu’s shoulders jolted at the sound.
That sound was no less than a thunderclap, as if it had cracked open the universe within a nutshell, bringing an immediate collapse of heaven and earth. Yet, more unbearable than the cataclysm was Zheng Kunyu’s gaze.
The phone skidded across the floor, coming to a stop in front of the door. Qi Bailu silently rolled out of bed, not bothering with slippers, and walked over step by step to pick it up. As expected, the screen was a spiderweb of cracks, completely shattered, the images and text lighting up in broken fragments.
He crouched there, staring down at the message interface, when a delivery call happened to ring through. Qi Bailu had to press the malfunctioning buttons several times before he could answer. He had just finished saying "Okay" when Zheng Kunyu walked up behind him, grabbed his arm, and yanked him up. He forcefully swiped at the phone in Qi Bailu's hand, sending it tumbling back to the floor.
Before Qi Bailu could even see him clearly, Zheng Kunyu shoved him aside, turned the handle, and walked out. This time, the phone looked even more pathetic; Qi Bailu couldn't type on the screen at all. He stood there in a daze, hearing Zheng Kunyu go downstairs and leave the living room. A moment later, he returned with the delivery.
Two portions, held in Zheng Kunyu’s hand, were brought to the dining room. The plastic bags rubbed against each other with his footsteps, making a rustling sound.
As evening approached, Cheng Wenhui tried calling Qi Bailu but couldn't get through. He waited leisurely for a bit after the first failed attempt before redialing. By the second and third times, Cheng Wenhui began to worry, as Qi Bailu was not the type to ignore work calls without reason. By the fifth attempt, while waiting for the call to connect, a call from Zheng Kunyu’s number came in.
Though it was Zheng Kunyu’s number, the voice on the other end was Qi Bailu’s. He gave a soft "Hello" to indicate he was listening.
Cheng Wenhui breathed a sigh of relief. "You're... with Mr. Zheng."
Cheng Wenhui couldn't help but feel a bit awkward, assuming they were in the middle of something. Guessing that Zheng Kunyu was listening nearby, he said, "I'm just reminding you not to forget the time. When you're... free, call me back."
Before the call could be hung up, Zheng Kunyu’s voice rang out from the other side: "He’s finished packing. Come and pick him up."
Cheng Wenhui waited a moment to confirm he hadn't misheard. Zheng Kunyu was indeed speaking to him. He asked, "Now?"
"Yes."
Cheng Wenhui looked at his darkened phone screen in surprise. Though he found it strange, he had to quickly prepare to head out. When he arrived at the lakeside villa, Qi Bailu was already dressed and waiting for him. The weather wasn't cold today, yet Qi Bailu was wearing a turtleneck. Cheng Wenhui roughly understood what had happened. He told Qi Bailu to wait in the car while he went to have a word with Zheng Kunyu.
It was March, and there wasn't much of a spring feel in the north yet, though a faint layer of green grass had spread by the lake, like a few emerald threads just starting on an embroidery frame. Cheng Wenhui wasn't gone long. When he returned, he was holding the battered phone. He sat in the back seat, signaled the driver to start, and then asked Qi Bailu beside him, "Who broke it?"
He didn't dare ask Zheng Kunyu, only Qi Bailu. Qi Bailu took the phone and fiddled with it; unexpectedly, a piece of the shattered screen popped off under the pressure of his finger. He handed it back to Cheng Wenhui. Cheng Wenhui remarked, "You two are smashing this today; tomorrow you might as well smash me and be done with it."
The driver in the front looked in the rearview mirror. Cheng Wenhui caught his eye and told him to go to a phone shop on a certain road.
Qi Bailu asked, "Can it be fixed?"
"How can this be fixed? Just buy a new one. Which model? The same as before, or the latest one?"
"Whatever you want."
Qi Bailu wasn't a tech enthusiast; as long as it worked, the brand and model didn't matter. When he had earned his first paycheck from *Afternoon*, he had carefully chosen a model with the best value for his needs. Later, when he had more than enough money, any purchase became a matter of indifference.
At the phone store, Cheng Wenhui got out to buy it himself, returning shortly with a box and telling the driver to go straight to the airport. The new phone felt smooth in his hand, the screen as pristine as a mirror. Once turned on, the initial setup screen appeared—like a newborn infant emerging from chaos, devoid of any memories or data records. But life could not be restarted like this, wiped clean to factory settings.
"It's just as well. You were due for a new phone anyway. Treat it as a new beginning."
Cheng Wenhui watched him swap the SIM card with a stern face, though his words carried a hint of consolation. Qi Bailu looked up at him. Mindful of the driver’s presence, Cheng Wenhui waited until they were on the plane to speak again. "For the next two or three months, it’s best if you two don't see each other."
"Did he... say those words himself?"
"Not verbatim, but that was Mr. Zheng’s meaning."
Thanks to the PR team’s efforts, the videos involving Zheng Kunyu had been deleted across the internet. However, the industry paparazzi were not so easily fooled; they knew exactly who Zheng Kunyu was. Currently, Chen Xiangfeng was a hot topic of national concern, so naturally, many media outlets were watching the movements of anyone connected to him. Zheng Kunyu also knew someone was pushing things from behind the scenes, trying to catch him in a mistake. All he could do was continue working while staying low, conducting a quiet investigation. He truly had no time or energy to spare for Qi Bailu right now.
Qi Bailu gave a soft "Mhm." It so happened that he didn't have the spirit to deal with Zheng Kunyu either. Even if the sky fell, he needed to get some sleep before the plane landed in Xiamen.
Once *Fierce Spring Water* began filming, the schedule was far from easy. The early stages required a significant amount of time to build chemistry with the other actors. Every day after finishing work, Qi Bailu wanted nothing more than to collapse into bed. Now, it wasn't just Cheng Wenhui who noticed his poor state; Xue Fang noticed it too. Perhaps because spring had arrived, Qi Bailu became somewhat lethargic. During breaks on set, he would often fall asleep while sitting in his chair.
Cheng Wenhui was deeply worried. Qi Bailu wasn't used to Southern cuisine and had a poor appetite. To maintain his slender frame for the role, he had to eat very little, essentially starving himself every day. This made it easy for him to become listless. Consequently, Cheng Wenhui had to find every possible way to get him to eat more. In this regard, Cheng Wenhui felt more like a nanny than ever, especially when he spent every day staring intently at Qi Bailu while he ate.
Because his new character enjoyed smoking and drinking, Qi Bailu suddenly lost all restraint. Cheng Wenhui couldn't control him and decided to turn a blind eye, as long as he didn't take any pills or go out and mess around like other stars. A bit of smoking was fine. He knew Qi Bailu was still struggling with the situation regarding Zheng Kunyu, even though Qi Bailu never mentioned it to him.
This state lasted for over half a month before slowly improving. Xiamen’s climate was humid, unlike the perennial dryness of the North China Plain. Once Qi Bailu gradually adapted to life on set, his complexion looked much better than it had in Beijing.
Chen Xiangfeng was held in administrative detention by the police for fifteen days. During this time, the related buzz remained at the top of the charts, and people on set were often heard discussing it. On the day he left the station, a crowd of onlookers gathered outside. Some of Chen Xiangfeng’s former fans were there too, hurling a barrage of insults at him as he was escorted through the center by several officers. Chen Xiangfeng merely kept his head down and hurried past. After this video was posted online, it was shared over two hundred thousand times.
Qi Bailu hadn't watched the video, but in his spare time, many people in the crew were watching the spectacle, including Lydia. Thus, he caught a glimpse of Chen Xiangfeng’s face—a once very handsome face now covered in dark stubble, looking bloated and haggard. Lydia wasn't particularly indignant; she only said, "There are so many people in this circle using drugs. Who did he offend to be this unlucky?"
The question of which power was pulling the strings behind the scenes was what some people cared about more. According to Cheng Wenhui, it was very likely the work of Pan Xiaoyan from Jiaxing Entertainment again, though Pan Xiaoyan was loudly proclaiming his innocence on social media. A flicker of suspicion crossed Qi Bailu’s mind as well. There weren't many people who would dare drag Zheng Kunyu into such muddy waters. He thought of someone, but then immediately dismissed the idea. Without evidence, he couldn't just pin such a baseless accusation on someone.
Zheng Kunyu didn't like chatting on WeChat, nor did he like making phone calls, so they truly hadn't been in contact. However, Qi Bailu knew that Zheng Kunyu and Cheng Wenhui were constantly in touch. Once, he accidentally overheard Cheng Wenhui on the phone with Zheng Kunyu. Cheng Wenhui had his back turned and didn't notice him approaching. Cheng Wenhui was saying, "...Aside from filming, he just broods in his room alone. He’s either studying films or playing Match-3 games. I told him to go out for a walk, to relax for a day, or have a meal with Dai Ping and the others, but he refuses to leave the room. He hasn't finished his medicine yet, but his health is fine; he’s actually gained two pounds. Filming is going smoothly. Pressure... there’s definitely pressure. You know Little Qi’s temperament; he’s the type who doesn't make a sound. Everything else is fine..."
Qi Bailu walked away silently before Cheng Wenhui could discover him. A few days after that, Cheng Wenhui suddenly brought him a PS4 and a stack of games, telling him to stop staring at his phone playing Match-3 games. Qi Bailu said playing Match-3 was simpler. Cheng Wenhui said, "Don't keep playing that; it's bad for your eyes." Qi Bailu remained silent. Cheng Wenhui added, "The money’s already spent, so just keep it."
How could Cheng Wenhui have been the one to buy it? Qi Bailu picked up *Red Dead Redemption 2* from the pile and unwrapped the disc. This could only have been bought by Zheng Kunyu.
Cheng Wenhui looked at his expression, thinking he was going to refuse. Fortunately, Qi Bailu eventually put it away without further protest, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief.
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
:--- | :--- | :---
泉水凶猛 | Fierce Spring Water | The title of the film Qi Bailu is currently shooting.
薛放 | Xue Fang | The director of the film *Fierce Spring Water*.
潘效言 | Pan Xiaoyan | A figure in the entertainment industry, likely a rival.
佳兴娱乐 | Jiaxing Entertainment | An entertainment company.
戴平 | Dai Ping | A colleague or acquaintance of Qi Bailu.
荒野大镖客2 | Red Dead Redemption 2 | A popular video game.
消消乐 | Match-3 games | Refers to casual puzzle games like *Anipop*.
拉片 | Studying films | A technical term for analyzing a film frame-by-frame.
