Chapter 35: Do You Want Another One?
Slap—
A crisp slap sound exploded in the confined storage room.
Wen Yan’s hand hung in mid-air, fingertips tingling slightly, palm burning with pain. He breathed rapidly, chest heaving violently, as if this slap had exhausted all his strength.
Pei Zhouye’s face was beaten to the side, scattered bangs covering his eyes.
“Done hitting?” He chuckled low, the tip of his tongue pressing against his burning cheek, his tone unusually calm and light. “Do you want another one?”
Wen Yan froze, fingers curling unconsciously.
He thought Pei Zhouye would be furious, would retaliate, or even force him like just now.
But the man just stood there, looking at him with a heavy gaze, as if waiting for some judgment.
Wen Yan looked down at his still trembling hand, then at the red mark on Pei Zhouye’s face.
He took a deep breath, pushed Pei Zhouye away violently, and walked out the door almost pathetically.
“You deserved it!”
Pei Zhouye watched Wen Yan’s back disappear again. He didn’t look back once, leaving only a sentence echoing in the storage room.
He lowered his head and chuckled lightly, looking at Gu Yulan in the surveillance console just now.
The lights in the banquet hall stung Wen Yan’s eyes.
He lowered his head and walked quickly through the crowd, following the path he came in, preparing to walk to the main exit.
Why did such things happen to him? Why did everything fall into a worse situation just when there was a little improvement?
Physiological heart pain was unbearable. The noise in his ears suddenly became louder.
Wen Yan frowned and looked up, seeing a familiar figure in the crowd.
Cheng Shangshi.
The tall and straight figure lowered his head at this moment, standing beside the manager Wen Yan had met once before.
A crowd gathered around. Lin Seran stood opposite him, a glass of red wine in hand, splashing it straight at him. The wine liquid flowed down Cheng Shangshi’s face.
Cheng Shangshi stood with eyes lowered, wine drops hanging on his eyelashes, but never looked up at Lin Seran.
“Apologize.” Lin Seran’s voice carried honeyed malice. He raised his chin, ordering Cheng Shangshi, “Previously on set, you spread rumors that I acted like a diva and was late.”
The manager anxiously pulled Cheng Shangshi’s sleeve, urging, “Apologize quickly!”
Wen Yan wanted to leave in exhaustion, but met Cheng Shangshi’s eyes the moment he turned around. Those usually gentle eyes were terrifyingly calm. Wine stains were still wet on his face, yet he stood straight.
“I didn’t spread rumors.” Cheng Shangshi’s voice was clearly audible. “You were three hours late, the whole crew was waiting for you. That is a fact.”
The surrounding noise grew louder.
Lin Seran’s face changed drastically, raising the wine glass to smash it over.
Surrounding jeers rose one after another:
“Is this the sincerity of coming to apologize?”
“Giving you face and you don’t take it!”
“Don’t think about mixing in the circle in the future.”
Wen Yan stood in place, suddenly realizing how similar they were at this moment.
Pathetic, humiliated, out of place with the crowd, treated casually.
“Seran.” Pei Zhouye’s voice came from the crowd. He walked over quickly, brows furrowed slightly.
On that handsome face was a bright red palm print. Pei Zhouye’s expression showed no abnormality, his gaze frank, not caring about others’ stares at all.
Naturally, others dared not discuss much either.
“Zhouye-ge, your face…” Lin Seran was a bit startled. Who dared to hit Pei Zhouye directly, and slap him on the face?
“It’s fine.” Pei Zhouye’s tone was calm. “What happened on your side?”
Shen Yao had called just now, saying Lin Seran was making things difficult for someone in public.
Lin Seran was usually ignorant and loved to make noise, but why be like this on his birthday? Listening to Shen Yao’s meaning, it was Lin Seran actively making things difficult for someone.
He glanced at Cheng Shangshi, paused, remembering this face.
Lin Seran’s tone softened immediately, sounding aggrieved: “Zhouye-ge, who doesn’t have emergencies? I was only late for a while that day, the director didn’t say anything, but he scolded me in front of the whole crew!”
“No one has ever scolded me to my face.” His tone was exaggerated.
Lin Seran wasn’t lying. He had been in the Pei family since childhood. Father Pei protected him well; otherwise, this lawless, arrogant, and willful personality wouldn’t have been fostered.
“Today is your birthday, don’t make it look too ugly.” Pei Zhouye’s tone was cold, not exactly severe.
He signaled the assistant with his eyes, tone impatient: “Handle it. Don’t let irrelevant people disturb the guests.”
The assistant immediately stepped forward, making a gesture to leave, leading Cheng Shangshi and the manager away from the scene.
From beginning to end, Pei Zhouye didn’t even ask a sentence about the truth, just glossing over this matter lightly.
Pei Zhouye left hurriedly again, seeming to be busy with something.
Lin Seran also left.
People around discussed Pei Zhouye’s partiality towards Lin Seran.
“Young Master Pei is moody, but has never shown a cold face to Lin Seran. Otherwise, this temper wouldn’t have been spoiled.”
“Never seen Young Master Pei treat others like this.”
Wen Yan felt it was laughable and pathetic.
Gu Yulan acted under the banner of liking him, but in reality, it was deception and exploitation time and again. Pei Zhouye acted under the banner of liking, but in reality, it was disrupting his life and teasing him time and again.
His phone was still with Gu Yulan; he didn’t plan to get it.
No matter what, he wanted to leave here now; walking out was fine.
One more look at Gu Yulan’s face, and he would feel disgusted.
When Wen Yan walked out of the banquet hall, he bumped into Cheng Shangshi standing at the door being scolded. He looked like he wasn’t listening at all.
The two looked at each other for a moment.
Cheng Shangshi spoke: “Are you going back too?”
The manager was already angry. Seeing Cheng Shangshi’s attitude, he was even more furious: “I’m talking to you properly! Do you still want to mix in this circle…”
His gaze moved to Wen Yan and froze abruptly.
He still remembered the day Pei Zhouye went specially to the dressing room. Although he only glanced hurriedly at the other person in the dressing room then, that face left too deep an impression, recognized at a glance now.
Wen Yan’s lips were obviously kissed, connecting with the palm print on Pei Zhouye’s face just now and his hurried departure.
The manager put on a smile again: “This is?”
He looked at Cheng Shangshi, hoping the other party would introduce.
“Don’t know.” Cheng Shangshi answered briefly.
The manager was about to explode with anger, not understanding why he was unlucky enough to manage an artist with such a personality. He now suspected his career might end here because of Cheng Shangshi.
“My name is Wen Yan.” Wen Yan suddenly spoke, voice flat.
He continued: “Could I trouble you to give me a ride back to the city?”
Cheng Shangshi didn’t speak. The manager agreed readily.
“Sure, our car is just nearby. Just right to drop you back on the way.”
Cheng Shangshi looked at the manager lightly, guessing what he was plotting under his abnormal enthusiasm.
The manager rolled his eyes and smiled more obsequiously: “Let’s add a contact method.”
Wen Yan frowned: “Sorry, my phone is not with me.”
The manager reacted for a moment, then immediately agreed knowingly.
On the way back, the manager sat in the passenger seat.
Using the action of fixing his hair, he secretly took photos of the back seat. In the photo, Wen Yan leaned his head against the car window. The outside light swept over his red and swollen lips, like a beautiful painting.
When sending the message, he deliberately cropped Cheng Shangshi out of the frame: [Young Master Pei, person is in the car, where needs to be sent?]
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