Chapter 55: Voluntary
“Boyfriend.”
As soon as Wen Yan spoke, both Wu Qingqing and Duan Mingtao were stunned, looking toward him.
They thought Wen Yan would deliberately hide the matter of his new boyfriend.
Moreover, Duan Mingtao knew the other person’s identity.
Wu Qingqing smiled. “We thought you didn’t want to tell us. When will you bring him out for us to meet?”
Wen Yan gave a vague answer. “We’ll see if there’s a chance.”
After a while, he lowered his head and added, “We won’t be together for very long, so we don’t have to meet.”
At most, it would only last until the end of December.
He wouldn’t be with Pei Zhouye for too long.
The atmosphere was a bit awkward; even the taxi driver couldn’t help but cough once.
Wu Qingqing broke the stalemate. “That’s fine too. Brother Yan, if I had a face like yours, I’d change boyfriends thirty times a month!”
“Cough, cough.”
This cough came from Duan Mingtao, who was sitting next to Wen Yan. Duan Mingtao looked unwell, staring at the passenger seat like a resentful husband.
Wen Yan was amused.
He knew they had misunderstood his meaning, thinking he was a player who loved to have fun. Even so, they still stood by his side.
Arriving at the restaurant, the group had a meal, chatting about the present and the future.
They were already juniors; in the first half of next year, they would face finding a job or choosing a school for postgraduate studies.
All three planned to take the postgraduate entrance exam and continue studying; their field required deeper research.
“I don’t want to test for this school.” Wu Qingqing took a sip of milk tea. “I want to go somewhere further south. I don’t want to stay in one place for a long time. What about you guys?”
Wen Yan smiled faintly. “You guys know, I plan to strive for guaranteed admission to this school. I quite like A City; maybe I’ll work here in the future too.”
Only Duan Mingtao didn’t answer immediately. He looked up at Wu Qingqing. “I should be going south too.”
Wu Qingqing laughed. “Then there’s a chance we’ll be in the same school again. Brother Yan, you’ll definitely get the guaranteed admission! You’re number one in everything you do!”
Wen Yan didn’t deny it, just smiled and teased the two, “I think the probability of you two being at the same school is very high.”
He worked hard enough, and his foundation was solid enough; he would strive to do whatever he wanted to achieve.
Wu Qingqing and Duan Mingtao were also excellent enough. If they wanted to go to the same school, it was probably a sure thing.
Duan Mingtao: “Mn.”
After finishing the meal, they sat and chatted for a while longer.
Someone came over and stopped in front of them.
“Hello. I’m looking for Wen Yan; there’s something I want to talk about.”
Hearing the voice, Wen Yan looked over in shock.
The mask and glasses covered him tightly, but his figure and voice were recognizable enough—it was Cheng Shangshi.
Wu Qingqing’s pupils quaked. Did she have some kind of constitution for encountering celebrities? Maybe it was because she always liked to find niche, remote, but delicious restaurants, so she always ran into stars.
Wu Qingqing asked uncertainly, “Are you Cheng Shangshi? I really liked the villainous second male lead you played before!”
The man nodded. “Are you Wen Yan’s friends? Hello.”
He looked at Wu Qingqing again and nodded slightly. “Thank you. I’ve heard Wen Yan mention you. It’s not convenient for a photo right now, but we can take one or have a meal together when there’s a chance in the future.”
Wen Yan finally recovered from his shock. “Aren’t you filming… forget it, let’s talk outside.”
He had clearly refused many times, yet the person in front of him was exceptionally stubborn.
Since he was already here, and it would only take a few words, Wen Yan didn’t refuse again. He got up and walked out the door with Cheng Shangshi.
As the two walked out, Wu Qingqing finally reacted.
She hadn’t heard what drama Cheng Shangshi was filming recently. It was a private project that fans didn’t know about, but Wen Yan knew.
She stared blankly at Duan Mingtao. “It’s Sister-in-law. A male sister-in-law.”
Wu Qingqing was a bit conflicted.
On one hand, Cheng Shangshi was an actor, so dating shouldn’t count as a scandal, and the partner was Wen Yan—they were a good match. On the other hand, Cheng Shangshi was famous for having many sasaeng fans. She was worried that if this relationship was dug up, Wen Yan would be negatively affected.
Duan Mingtao didn’t understand Wu Qingqing’s words, so he skipped over her muttering and actively started another topic.
Restaurant Backyard
Wen Yan spoke first, “I already said it doesn’t matter. There’s really no need to meet in person to say it.”
After he finished, Cheng Shangshi spoke up. “I feel that apologies should be said face-to-face. Moreover, I did benefit from betraying you. If I didn’t say it in person, it would be too insincere.”
Wen Yan didn’t know what to say.
Cheng Shangshi really was like his name—upright and stubborn like a stone.
Cheng Shangshi continued, “Brother Wang signed a contract with the company for many years and has the pressure of supporting his family. He isn’t a bad person; he is also very sorry about this matter.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Wen Yan said muffedly.
Everyone had pressure. Even if Agent Wang hadn’t snitched, Pei Zhouye would have had ways to catch him back all the same.
Pei Zhouye was crazy and had the means. If he wanted to force him to do something, it was only a matter of time.
Cheng Shangshi noticed Wen Yan’s sudden low spirits and asked, “Is President Pei forcing you? Brother Wang told me President Pei likes you. If you are unwilling, you can resist. If you need help, you can find me.”
Wen Yan recalled the nature of their relationship again.
He felt a bit like laughing. Walking to where they were today, rather than saying Pei Zhouye forced him, it was more that Pei Zhouye allowed those things that forced him to happen. He had resisted, resisted until he had no way to resist anymore.
He laughed self-deprecatingly. To some extent, Pei Zhouye had even saved him.
Saved his life, saved him from villains, saved him from millions in debt.
“No.”
As the night wind scraped past the back of his neck, he heard himself say, “I am doing this voluntarily.”
After saying these two sentences, Wen Yan let out a sigh of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
He stopped, turning to look at Cheng Shangshi. “It doesn’t matter anymore. My friends are still waiting for me; I have to go back first.”
“Wait.” Cheng Shangshi stopped him. “If you encounter any trouble in the future where I can help, just ask.”
“I owe you a favor. Until this favor is returned, we count as friends now, right?”
Wen Yan thought this person was very strange.
He was in a bad mood, so he agreed perfunctorily, “Okay.”
He walked away hurriedly, his back disappearing around the corner of the corridor.
Cheng Shangshi stared at that spot.
His perception of emotions was weak, yet he was obsessed with acting.
If he couldn’t stay in the entertainment industry, he would go back to the opera circle to sing, or act in plays.
But just now, he could sense the emotional fluctuations in Wen Yan. Even though Wen Yan hadn’t said anything.
He felt curious. If they became friends, he would have more opportunities to contact and observe Wen Yan in the future.
When Wen Yan returned to the table, Wu Qingqing and Duan Mingtao were chatting.
Wu Qingqing looked at him with strange eyes.
Her straw was chewed flat. “Brother Yan, you’re so handsome, you can date whoever you want. I think you should still consider it more, don’t hurt yourself.”
Duan Mingtao looked up at Wu Qingqing in surprise. Wu Qingqing had actually guessed that Wen Yan was dating Pei Zhouye.
As expected of the person he liked; her observation skills were so keen.
Wen Yan thought Duan Mingtao had already told Wu Qingqing, so he didn’t fuss about it.
He nodded. “Thank you, I know.”
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