Chapter 80: Hi
Four eyes met in a tense, awkward stalemate.
Security Guard: “Are you going to walk out yourself, or do I have to kick you out?”
Wen Yan pointed at the gate system, which was frozen and flashing a frantic red [NOT REGISTERED] notification. He explained weakly, “Shu, if I told you it’s just frozen, would you believe me?”
Security Guard: “You good-looking young people shouldn’t lie just to chase stars. At the very least, you shouldn’t disrupt normal life.”
Wen Yan looked up at the sky.
The sky was blue; his face was likely the color of ash.
He let out a silent sigh and prepared to back out of the narrow passage. He would explain to the Daoyuan first and reschedule.
As Wen Yan turned around, looking down at the time on his phone, he could still feel the many lenses in the vicinity pointed in his direction. It was an awkward, uncomfortable sensation, and he quickened his pace.
Before he could reach the crowd, someone suddenly screamed, and the mass of people surged forward frantically.
“Seran!”
“Qingqing!”
The massive wave of screaming hit them. The security team quickly closed ranks to form a safety perimeter.
“Watch your safety! Stay back!”
The guard who had just been speaking to Wen Yan shouted as he reflexively shoved Wen Yan back into the passage of the facial recognition gate.
The outside was packed with people, and the gate system was still frozen, so he couldn’t get in. Wen Yan was forced to remain stuck there.
The barrier at the entrance rose, and several bodyguards emerged from within to clear the way.
The cars moved slowly. The lead black car rolled down its window, revealing Lin Seran’s face.
Lin Seran leaned out to wave at the people outside. The surrounding screams grew even more fanatical as people shrieked his name, desperate for his attention.
The car was stuck under the barrier for too long, and Lin Seran was starting to lose his patience. He glanced around randomly, and his gaze suddenly froze.
In the security gate passage right beside him stood another person. A pair of eyes was watching him—a face that he absolutely loathed.
“Wen Yan?!”
The smile vanished from Lin Seran’s face, and he couldn’t help but raise his voice.
Wen Yan felt that his current situation was both pathetic and hilarious. Seeing the other man staring at him and offering a greeting of sorts, he remained expressionless and simply raised a hand in a brief wave.
A flat, emotionless “Hi.”
Lin Seran’s professional mask nearly cracked right then and there.
[ Recognition Passed: Wen Yan ]
The gate system suddenly turned green and the turnstile opened.
Wen Yan snapped back to reality and hurried inside before the system could glitch a second time. If he ran now, he could still make it.
He and Lin Seran were never in a relationship that required a proper goodbye.
Inside the CEO’s Office
Shen Yao stood by the window, admiring the view outside.
“Brother, now that you’ve been promoted, why did your office get worse? It’s just buildings everywhere outside. Nothing to look at.”
His tone carried a hint of resentment.
Lately, Pei Zhouye had been as busy as a spinning top. There were basically no opportunities to meet, and his WeChat replies were always [Busy], [No time], or [In a meeting].
Actually, it was to be expected. The transition period after taking over the family business was always busier than usual, and the Pei family was a massive empire. Pei Zhouye was buried under work. It was hard enough to stay in the same place for a day, let alone sit down for a casual chat.
Pei Zhouye gave a perfunctory “Mhm” to the nonsense Shen Yao had just spewed, his gaze never leaving the emails on his computer screen.
Shen Yao pouted and resigned himself to the sofa. Who else had his kind of luck? Two biological brothers and one Brother Pei—three older brothers who could ensure his wealth and prosperity for a lifetime.
Thinking of this, Shen Yao’s mood improved. He picked up his phone, put on his headphones, and started scrolling. His notifications were at the usual 99+, but he didn’t care, clicking straight into a short video app.
After scrolling through a few clips, a video suddenly appeared that made Shen Yao’s eyes widen. He stared for a moment, then slowly clicked on the related search terms. He was completely stunned.
After a long silence, Shen Yao spoke up weakly, his heart pounding with trepidation:
“Brother.”
There was no response. Pei Zhouye’s silence was a signal for him to get straight to the point.
Shen Yao swallowed hard, trying to guess what Pei Zhouye’s reaction would be.
“Sister-in-law is viral.”
Pei Zhouye stopped his work. His thin eyelids lifted as he looked over.
Shen Yao walked over with his phone and showed the screen to Pei Zhouye.
It was a very short video with a six-figure like count. In the video, a person with an exceptionally superior and aloof face, wearing a black windbreaker, was standing in the narrow passage of a facial recognition gate. With an expressionless face, he raised his hand and waved at the car beside him.
The caption was somewhat humorous, talking about the “contrast” and how the cool, handsome guy looked like an AI “NPC.”
As he scrolled through several consecutive videos, the like counts were all high. Below, students from A Da and people from Nanshi also came out to say they recognized him, confirming that Wen Yan was indeed a student at A Da and that he was even more stunning in person than in the blurry videos.
Even brand partners and collaborators from Wen Yan’s time as a model chimed in.
An outstanding face and aura, a top-tier education, the contrasting behavior, and the slow reaction to being trapped there by accident—a series of factors had aligned perfectly. It was a natural explosion of popularity across the internet.
“Brother, the heat is pretty high. A lot of media accounts have already started reposting it.” Shen Yao watched Pei Zhouye’s gloomy, quiet expression; he didn’t look like he was in a good mood.
He added, “Should I find a way to suppress the heat?”
“No need,” Pei Zhouye’s voice was cold and heavy. “Just suppress any negative news.”
It was only human nature to fall for Wen Yan. It was just that he was loath to let Wen Yan go—loath to let Wen Yan be seen by so many people and subject him to further harassment.
“Understood.”
Shen Yao responded, looking up as if to say something else, but seeing the heavy darkness in Pei Zhouye’s eyes, he bit his tongue. Right now, his brother didn’t look like he wanted to hear anything regarding Lin Seran.
The three of them hadn’t met since the birthday banquet. Pei Zhouye already knew Lin Seran was at A Da for filming; there was no need to mention it again.
Inside a Room
Lin Seran stared deathly at his phone.
His assistant returned from outside, carrying a cup of Iced Americano. “Brother Ran, your coffee is here.”
Lin Seran ignored him with a stony face, and the assistant was too afraid to even breathe.
The manager took one look and waved his hand impatiently, signaling the assistant to leave. As the door clicked shut, only two people remained in the room.
The manager rubbed his temples, his tone irritable. “What set you off this time?”
Lin Seran’s expression was terrible, and he didn’t answer. The manager was almost amused by this “Emperor-like” reaction.
Acting like a big shot when he was a minor one, being hours late, forcing people to swap roles—none of these traits belonged to an artist he would usually manage, yet Lin Seran checked every box. If it weren’t for the fact that Pei Zhouye paid so generously, he wouldn’t have the patience to serve Lin Seran until now. It was practically a stain on his career.
Lin Seran threw his phone over, nearly hitting the manager’s nose. The manager caught it reflexively.
“Look at this! He’s just a commoner, and he’s stolen all the heat from our drama’s promotion! Are you not going to do something?”
To think he could even use “drama promotion” as an excuse.
Lin Seran roared, “On what basis?! Is this a trap set by my rivals? How does he have the right to…”
“Shut up!” the manager roared back, his face darkening as he suppressed the younger man’s voice.
“Walls have ears.”
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