Chapter 19: The Thief
The barrage was immediately filled with condemnation of Tang Yue’s actions.
Viewers who hadn’t followed Away were curious about the poster, and the official account, with a lack of decency, showed a picture of Jiang Shulu’s autographed poster from that year.
Yao Lixin: “Tang Yue is hiding his talents. Meimei, don’t you have any of my posters?”
He described it: “I have red hair, so handsome.”
“Yao Lixin, you’re so confident.”
“I don’t know why, but I find him so shameless, hahaha.”
The child thought carefully and finally shook his head solemnly.
Tang Mian: “There are others, but they’re still Dad Shulu’s. There’s… a huge poster of him with blond hair.”
“Yao Lixin, don’t be sad, I still have your poster, anyone want it? Selling at a low price.”
“The sisters in the barrage are so wicked, hahahahaha.”
“He learned from his idol.”
Jiang Shulu, as the person involved, remained silent. After the program team announced the next arrangement, he made a phone call.
After the broadcast of the variety show, many people understood that this was simply a group variety show disguised as a parenting show.
Yao Lixin acted like an enthusiastic MC on the livestream, while the single Liu Xicháo seemed to live on Weibo, creating off-screen effects from time to time.
For the five days of the first journey, the guests had to complete tasks at designated locations and meet local tourism KPIs.
They had to discover niche attractions and leave recommendations.
Tang Yue went to sleep early because he was drunk, and the child went to bed after showering.
Yao Lixin and Jiang Shulu sat in the courtyard looking at tomorrow’s itinerary.
Yao Lixin: “Do you know how to do bamboo weaving? I saw Tang Yue searching for many tutorials while eating.”
Jiang Shulu: “I’ll learn it.”
Jiang Shulu had half-dried his hair after showering.
Compared to Yao Lixin’s flamboyant pajamas, his pajamas looked neat and orderly, completely different from the long-haired, pink-haired idol in the posters released by the program team.
It was as if he had many unknown sides, always attracting others to explore him.
“Captain, don’t be too arrogant.”
“Has Jiang Shulu always been so confident?”
“Please look at his resume, okay? He’s been winning various championships since he was little.”
“It feels like his life is a bug, the four words ‘domineering CEO’ can’t describe him.”
Yao Lixin muttered, “I don’t know when Liu Xicháo will come. The program team seems to have prepared many activities, goodness.”
Jiang Shulu looked down at the physically demanding itinerary and thought of Tang Yue’s slender wrists and unsteady gait, feeling a little displeased.
After taking on this variety show, Jiang Shulu had asked his uncle, Jiang He, if he knew anything.
His uncle always liked to act mysterious, and Liu Xicháo probably liked that; he never said anything a normal person could understand.
He only told Jiang Shulu that the behind-the-scenes investor was a big shot, and that he would find out, and it might become his assistance.
Was that person related to Tang Yue?
No matter how you looked at it, this variety show seemed specially arranged for him and Tang Yue.
Yao Lixin and Liu Xicháo merely made the variety show less monotonous.
Like there was a reason for their necessary reunion.
Without thinking too much, all the signs told Jiang Shulu that he was deeply entangled with Tang Yue.
Jiang Shulu’s vague guess surfaced again, but he didn’t know whether to get a test so soon.
At least, Tang Yue had to be willing to tell him first.
Even if the truth was what Jiang Shulu guessed, it didn’t mean he had the right to propose to Tang Yue.
The missing years of his life, Tang Mian’s “like”, and the posters Tang Yue cherished.
It made Jiang Shulu feel increasingly guilty.
Seeing Jiang Shulu’s silence, Yao Lixin didn’t feel embarrassed; he didn’t care if he was live-streaming and made a call to Liu Xicháo.
The livestream was scheduled to end at eleven o’clock, and it wasn’t time yet.
The audience didn’t expect Yao Lixin to be so casual about them.
“Why is Liu Xicháo’s contact name Pig Liu?! I want a hamburger.”
“Do you all have nicknames in private?”
“I feel like Jiang Shulu isn’t in a good mood.”
“Wuwuwu, I’m watching the camera in Tang Yue’s room. He’s sleeping so restlessly.”
After a while, Liu Xicháo answered the call.
It was noisy on his end; he was probably still on set.
His voice was mixed with noise, and his impatience was obvious: “I just finished work, couldn’t you have called me half an hour later?”
The tone was very familiar.
Yao Lixin: “Didn’t you answer anyway?”
Liu Xicháo: “Anything?”
Yao Lixin: “Let’s chat, we’re one short.”
Liu Xicháo: “Is the captain there too?”
Jiang Shulu hummed, and Liu Xicháo was about to ask about Tang Yue when he heard a sound, something falling, a clang.
Liu Xicháo was puzzled: “What happened?”
Yao Lixin was still eating melon seeds, and said, “Tang Yue probably rolled off the bed. The captain ran in.”
His tone was casual, as if this had happened before.
Liu Xicháo laughed: “How can someone be so clumsy at his age?”
Yao Lixin: “You’ll know when you get here. Tang Yue looks like he hasn’t grown up.”
While they chatted, some fans listened with great interest, while others watched the camera in the room.
They watched Jiang Shulu rush into the room anxiously, and Tang Yue, sitting on the floor, holding his head, looking at Jiang Shulu in bewilderment.
“It sounds painful.”
“Tang Yue really looks clumsy.”
“Jiang Shulu’s anxious look is… exaggerated.”
“Don’t worry, if Yao Lixin fell off the bed, he’d just say ‘oh,’ a cruelly double-standard.”
Tang Yue felt much better after sleeping for an hour or so; although he was still groggy, his consciousness was clear.
The fall had made him more awake.
For a moment, he was still unclear about his whereabouts and looked at Jiang Shulu in surprise: “Captain, why are you in my house?”
“Got it, he’s still not awake.”
“How did he raise his child as a single parent? Meimei, you’ve worked hard.”
Jiang Shulu: “Does it hurt?”
He walked over and helped Tang Yue onto the bed, but found Tang Yue staring blankly at him.
When a day’s livestream variety show ended, a countdown would appear.
At this moment, the screen showed numbers, but the audience was reluctant to leave, because Tang Yue suddenly hugged Jiang Shulu.
It was the kind of hug where he immediately threw himself on Jiang Shulu as soon as he was helped onto the bed, catching Jiang Shulu off guard, and pushing him directly onto the bed.
“Ahhhhhhh, why did it end at this moment!! Can I pay to watch?”
“Damn! What’s going on?!”
“Is Tang Yue this aggressive?”
“He probably hasn’t sobered up yet?”
“The maknae actually likes this position? Help, Jiang Shulu just got up and was pushed down again.”
“Although the room is dilapidated, the lighting and angles are great. The post-production team is amazing at cutting shots, making it like a movie.”
“Jiang Shulu, where is your hand!! Wuwuwu, I want to hold Tang Yue’s waist too.”
“Suggest adding another camera at the head of the bed so I can see Tang Yue’s expression.”
“Am I the only one who thinks Jiang Shulu is terrified?”
Unfortunately, the barrage stopped abruptly because the livestream closed at the set time.
Livestream variety shows are currently popular, but they are prone to accidents.
24-hour livestreams test the show’s script and the characters’ personas. Without a script, it easily ruins celebrities’ public image, and poor acting is a disaster.
Therefore, there are only a handful of livestream variety shows that can be considered popular.
Many people who had watched other livestream variety shows felt that Chengkong Media’s show was very sloppy.
It was more like a vlog of a boy band’s life and travels, at most, with a livestream mode.
However, Away had too many topics, their looks were still top-notch, and compared to other members of disbanded boy bands, the four of them were still attractive.
The first day’s finale was fixed on the child’s sleeping face, Yao Lixin and Liu Xicháo chatting, and the highly story-telling picture of Jiang Shulu and Tang Yue.
Many bloggers took screenshots of the final scene.
@Tonight’s Gossip Doesn’t Talk About Love: [picture][picture] Can I watch this? The child is cute! But this is more exaggerated than the marriage observation variety show next door, right?
—Tang Yue’s search index exploded today.
—Help, even though the livestream is over, my mind is full of Tang Yue’s waist, it’s so damn thin, I feel inferior.
—I envy Jiang Shulu, being sat on by Tang Yue.
—Why is the widowed maknae like this (Jiang Shulu’s inner os)
—The first episode broke the cp setting of Away back then, awesome!!
—It feels like the program team is guiding us to ship Captain x Maknae.
—Doesn’t anyone think the child is too… like Tang Yue’s? I remember there was news before about a rare genetic disease, men can give birth!
—omg, wouldn’t that mean Jiang Shulu is a big winner?
—No, I would be heartbroken, such a beautiful maknae running away with a child, wuwuwu my baby.
Jiang Shulu didn’t bother to check if the livestream had ended, because Tang Yue was clinging to him and wouldn’t let go.
During the sudden turn, Tang Yue’s pajama bottom had ridden up, allowing Jiang Shulu to see the scar under the dim nightlight.
The scar Tang Yue wouldn’t talk about, but which was very ambiguous.
As if Tang Mian really came from Tang Yue’s belly.
Jiang Shulu called out, “Xiao Yue.”
But Tang Yue fell, falling onto Jiang Shulu. Their bodies overlapped through their pajamas, far more intimate than their closeness during their band days.
Even when they were rushing schedules and sleeping crowded together, Tang Yue would stay far away from Jiang Shulu.
Jiang Shulu had seen him sleep soundly in Yao Lixin’s arms, and he’d seen Tang Yue leaning on Liu Xicháo’s lap, but his side was always empty.
Jiang Shulu had privately asked Tang Yue if he had any objections to him.
That day, he answered his mother’s call, his mood wasn’t good, and he stood on the balcony smoking.
Away’s residence didn’t have to worry about paparazzi; this area was mostly Jiang family property.
Entry and exit were strictly controlled, and there were no private fans lurking.
When Tang Yue was called over by Jiang Shulu, he was nervous, standing stiffly on the other side of the balcony.
After glancing at Jiang Shulu, he quickly lowered his eyes and called him “Captain” in a faint voice.
Jiang Shulu didn’t intend to beat around the bush. A slender cigarette was held between the man’s long fingers, but it didn’t look out of place.
Jiang Shulu asked: “Xiao Yue, do you have any objections to me?”
Tang Yue subconsciously shook his head.
Unlike Yao Lixin and Liu Xicháo, Jiang Shulu rarely showed his emotions.
In fact, fans weren’t entirely right in calling him an unattainable man.
Because he wasn’t aloof; he was quite easy-going, shattering people’s stereotypes of the only heir to a wealthy family.
But Jiang Shulu wasn’t easy to approach, at least not outwardly.
Even when he smiled, there was a distance, like a thin morning mist.
Especially when he was in a bad mood, that distance had a fragmented feel, as if some part of this person was shattered, yet he seemed normal.
Tang Yue was sensitive by nature and acutely aware of malice.
Jiang Shulu had no malice. On that ordinary night with the full moon hanging high, the man looked exceptionally lonely.
So lonely that Tang Yue wanted to hug him.
But Tang Yue didn’t have the right; he remained where he was, restraining his desire to cling to Jiang Shulu, and seriously shook his head.
“No, Captain.”
Jiang Shulu: “Then why…”
Jiang Shulu had many questions that day, such as Tang Yue’s differential treatment, the intimate hugs that became a step back when it came to him.
But he also knew that asking directly would hurt Tang Yue.
Like now, his eyes were wandering, his lowered hands unconsciously clenching the other hand; he was already nervous.
Jiang Shulu shook his head: “Nothing.”
Tang Yue responded with an “Oh.” He remained where he was. After a few dozen seconds, Jiang Shulu said: “Go back and play.”
Tang Yue, relieved, took a few steps and then came back, cautiously asking: “Are you unhappy?”
In everyone’s eyes, he was truly unsophisticated, as innocent as an alien, making people wonder how he had grown up over the years.
Completely opposite to the mature person described in his profile who worked various jobs.
But because of the amnesia caused by the car accident, everyone could understand.
Jiang Shulu pretended to be relaxed and smiled at him, “Nothing, I’ll be alone for a while.”
Actually, he was under a lot of pressure. Being taken back to the Jiang family meant he had no choice.
His hobbies would be elevated by his mother to be a tool for comparison; once that happened, Jiang Shulu wouldn’t like them anymore.
The young Jiang Shulu and his current personality were completely different, Jiang He had also mentioned that.
As for why, the Jiang family knew it well.
The family was too heavy, with an invisible pressure from the old-fashioned wealthy family, with a mandatory cultivation plan for every child born.
Like a fixed mold, carefully planning their future growth.
Such as how the family would continue, to what extent the wealth would continue to expand.
Jiang He wasn’t the first heir, so he didn’t suffer so much, but the personality twisted in his youth also made him uncomfortable.
This was also true in relationships, as if he was waiting to be healed.
Jiang Shulu was gifted, learning quickly. These were talking points, packaged as a genius, forcing him to follow the rules.
This band was stolen by Jiang Shulu.
Three years of freedom bought with his blood.
As a young man, he was submissive, leading his family to believe that this child who had been brought back had no rebellious spirit.
But they didn’t know that rebelliousness could also turn into bone spurs, making it hard to sleep.
Jiang Shulu needed a blank sheet of paper to hold all his hidden pain and melancholy.
The result shocked the family. His mother was still unwilling to let him have a three-year break.
She even suggested that you can have a child first, we’ve already chosen a suitable girl for you.
Jiang Shulu stood under the moonlight, lost in thought for a long time. A cigarette was lit, he didn’t take a puff, watching the smoke curl and dissipate into the air.
He thought: What kind of child do I want, a copy of my pain? Make an innocent girl replicate my mother’s despair?
A small attic, a wooden bed, a tight life, a woman kicked out of her home, and the mocking eyes of nosy neighbors.
Jiang Shulu would never forget this in his life.
He didn’t know how, but he thought of Tang Yue, and that he hadn’t been avoided so thoroughly for many years.
He found it funny, so he asked Yao Lixin, who was dancing downstairs, to call Tang Yue up.
Tang Yue would occasionally annoy Jiang Shulu.
But most of the time, as long as Jiang Shulu met Tang Yue’s eyes, he felt relaxed.
They were eyes so clear that Jiang Shulu loved them at first sight.
Very much like the blue-eyed white kitten he picked up when he was young, but his father got rid of it under the pretext of impure bloodline while Jiang Shulu was at school.
Jiang Shulu knew Tang Yue didn’t like him.
In the band, Tang Yue liked Yao Lixin the most, always calling him “brother.”
But Tang Yue’s child seems to think Tang Yue likes me a lot.
The child’s eyes were nothing like Tang Yue’s; Jiang Shulu felt shocked when he first saw them.
For a moment, he even felt a secret joy.
Tang Yue, you’ll inevitably be entangled with me.
At this moment, the dim nightlight made the outline of Tang Yue, lying on Jiang Shulu, seem to be outlined in gold sand.
Inch by inch, outlining Jiang Shulu’s long-hidden desire.
He glanced at the camera, which was no longer glowing red, and finally hugged Tang Yue tightly.
Jiang Shulu closed his eyes, his chin resting on Tang Yue’s head, as if wanting to hold onto the “like” he had constantly lost over the years.
Tang Yue in concrete form.
No longer the blurry, sobbing young man in his dreams.
Even the dreaming Tang Yue found it hard to resist such a tender embrace. He clung to Jiang Shulu, calling him “Captain” at one moment, and “Shulu ge” with a whimper at another.
He even seemed wronged, vaguely rubbing his lips against the person beneath him.
Like that night, that month, that year, his burning desire, mixed with his untouchable longing for Jiang Shulu, turned into a turbulent intertwining of lips and teeth.
Only back then, Tang Yue didn’t dare to bite.
This time, Tang Yue bit.
He bit Jiang Shulu so hard that he cried out in pain, yet felt satisfied.
He murmured softly, “Tang Yue, you’re the thief.”