Chapter 34: Guan Yaoming
Of course. With a production that big, suddenly giving the male lead to some newcomer no one has even heard of, how could Zhao Mian not be suspicious?
This was exactly why Guan Yaoming initially didn't want Lin Mo to become famous. If Lin Mo suddenly had resources and rose to fame, Zhao Mian would definitely guess who was promoting him.
But not letting Lin Mo become famous was simply impossible unless they cut ties completely.
Irritation rose in Guan’s chest. If it were so easy to cut clean, it would not have dragged to this point.
“Let me see. How bad is it?” He came in and saw Li Dong pressing a hard-boiled egg to the split at the corner of his mouth. Guan crouched in front of him, took the egg, and rolled it for him with his own hand.
“Ah!” Li Dong hissed and swore. “Hit me that hard, trying to kill me? Oh f*ck, it just split again…” It hurt.
“Quiet. Keep talking and of course it will split,” Guan scolded. Watching him in pain made Guan’s own heart flinch. This was the little ancestor he could not bring himself to scold, and yet Zhao Mian had gone and messed up his face.
“Looking ugly like this, how am I supposed to go out and see people? Talk about bad luck.” Lines like that flowed from Li Dong without effort, no thinking required.
“You are not ugly. It will be fine in a few days. I will go downstairs and buy you spray,” Guan sighed.
“You had better leave and not come back,” Li Dong said at once. With a face in that state, it only made him look like he was angling for comfort rather than making trouble.
Guan did not argue. He simply found Li Dong’s keys, took them, and headed out.
“Idiot male lead, you never heard of deadbolts?” Li Dong rolled his eyes. If he truly did not want Guan inside, there were ways.
But he would not dare. In this city's underground circles, Guan Yaoming ultimately called the shots. He couldn’t afford to provoke him.
Roughly ten minutes later, Guan returned with several sprays. He opened one and misted the split carefully. “Do not lick it with your tongue.”
“How am I supposed to eat then?” Li Dong frowned. “With a cut like this I cannot even eat. Damn.” At lunch he had stuffed himself on seafood buffet and that was it.
“Do not open your mouth so wide. Eat slowly,” Guan soothed. He kept waiting for Li Dong to vent and tell him the whole story, but the man would not. He only complained about the crack and the inconveniences, which left Guan with mixed feelings.
“I guess that is all I can do,” Li Dong muttered. “At this hour, why are you free to come find me? Did you eat?”
“I ate,” Guan said but he had not eaten well. Getting blocked had made smoke pour out of his head. Now that he knew the situation, he cupped Li Dong’s face. “Tell me exactly what happened.”
Li Dong’s mouth pulled to the side. “I went to audition this morning. While Director Yang was walking me through the scene, Mian-ge arrived. He was also there to audition for the male lead. Director Yang had us both read a scene. In the end he chose me. I saw Mian-ge was in a bad mood and slipped out early, but he came after me and said he wanted to talk. We got to a corner and he punched me without warning…”
Made him furious, and he couldn’t even hit back.
“…”
“And then he hauled me up by the collar and warned me not to go near you again,” Li Dong continued. “Or he would make it public and let everyone know I am a homewrecker. The moment he left I blocked you. I was afraid he would really pull something and I would lose all face.”
“The news cycle is not his to control. That is in my hands,” Guan said, touching his cheek. “Don’t believe what he says. He doesn’t have that capability.” He was only a Best Actor. In truth he had no real leverage. It was only rookies like Li Dong who would be frightened.
“He is still a Best Actor, has been in the industry for years, knows a lot of people, and behind him is you. How could I not be afraid?” Li Dong said. “He hit me and I did not even dare tell you.”
Exactly. He had only thrown a tantrum by blocking Guan. It was both stupid and childish.
“I’m sorry. This is all my fault for dragging you into this,” Guan said softly. He kissed Li Dong’s face tenderly. He truly felt bad for him.
“Yao-ge, stop apologizing,” Li Dong said. “After this, can you not see my situation is dangerous? If you care about me, do not come find me anymore. Go back to Mian-ge and treat him well. Three years together is not easy. If you are bored in that area, try something new. Let Mian-ge figure that out and learn.”
“…” We do not even f*cking have that area.
It would have been fine if he had not brought it up. The moment he did, Guan could not swallow it.
Which couple lived like he and Zhao Mian did, pure as monks, kissing only to the point and stopping there.
When it came down to it, Zhao Mian just wasn't proactive. He had no passion or impulse toward his partner.
Unlike being with Li Dong, where he’d be thrown onto the bed in minutes.
“Do not overthink it,” Guan said. “With me here, he will not dare do anything.”
“I do not believe you,” Li Dong said, pushing him away and pointing at his split lip. “He hit me. If he had wanted to finish me off right there, I would already be dead. Do you get that?”
As someone who feared death, how could he keep seeing the boss like this. They should break up.
“Starting today, I am assigning you two bodyguards. They will follow you everywhere. Zhao will not touch a hair on your head,” Guan said generously. “The only reason he could hit you this time was because we were not prepared, am I right?”
“Mm.” Li Dong pretended to be soothed.
“It will not happen again. Focus on acting well. Director Yang says you are good and has high hopes for you. If you run into Zhao again, do not confront him head on.” Until he confirmed everything, Guan could not fully take Li Dong’s words on faith.
“Easy to say,” Li Dong grumbled. “It is just so humiliating. If I dated a man with no lover, would I be swallowing this?”
“When you came to my room, you already knew I had someone. This is the road you chose,” Guan said.
Li Dong raised his chin and said nothing. He picked up the still-warm egg and kept rolling.
“Do not be like this. I care about you. Otherwise why would I hand you the male lead,” Guan coaxed, holding the sulking fresh meat. His tone was probably the gentlest it had ever been in his life.
He could only talk like this to a young, fussy little fresh meat. If he had to speak this way to Zhao Mian, he would feel sick.
“You want me to forgive you? Fine. Stay with me for a full week, until my mouth heals,” Li Dong said. “During that time you cannot go back to kiss and cuddle him. I will be jealous.”
“Alright. I promise,” Guan said. The condition was simple, since he and Zhao had no sex life anyway.
Forget one week, three years without intimacy was easy.
“Good. Then I forgive you,” Li Dong said with a squinting smile. He planted a kiss on Guan’s face, and the playful, flirtatious fresh meat that made President Guan lose control came back all at once.
Guan let out a long breath. Getting this ancestor soothed felt amazing.
Thirty minutes later, Li Dong was asleep.
“Agou,” Guan said after stepping out onto the balcony. He called his subordinate Liang Gou. “Check Director Yang’s building surveillance from this morning. Yes. Send it to me as soon as you can.”
Then he called Director Yang. “Sorry to trouble you. I have some things I want to ask…”
Despite what Li Dong said, Guan still held some doubt. He had not let the fresh meat cloud his judgment. He was level-headed by habit.
“Yao-ge, I have cut the surveillance you wanted. Take a look,” Liang Gou reported. “From Mian-ge’s arrival to when he left.”
Watching it, Guan realized he might have learned something serious.
He opened the video on his phone and watched.
He saw Li Dong and Zhao reading together, saw Director Yang choose the male lead. In the end Li Dong did leave first. Then Zhao stopped him, dragged him into a corner, and without a word threw a punch.
Guan had already felt distressed hearing Li Dong describe it. Seeing the footage of him going down under that punch made his chest seize up.
“Zhao Mian, I did not expect this side of you…” he muttered, incredulous. The man who kept up a refined, calm image, who prided himself on taste, had raised a hand and hit someone.
In this moment, Guan Yaoming’s feelings toward Zhao Mian grew complicated. He felt Zhao Mian shouldn’t be angry but should reflect on why his partner would cheat.
What use was hitting Li Dong at this point? If his head were clear enough, he should talk with his partner about what went wrong and fix it.
The scary thing was that Zhao Mian never reflected and never thought he was wrong.
“Yao-ge, it is dark out here. What are you doing?” Li Dong woke and found Guan on the balcony.
“Looking at the night view,” Guan said with a smile, crooking his fingers. “Come here. Let me hold you.” The kid was too honest, could not lie to save his life, a straightforward teenage boy.
Li Dong approached with suspicion and was swept into a hug.
“It should be me holding you,” he said, then opened his arms and gave Guan a big embrace. “You are very comfortable to hold. You have a smell I really like.”
“What smell?” Guan asked. “I do not wear cologne. Are you hinting I stink?” He was even joking.
“Of course not. I mean a feeling. You smell reassuring,” Li Dong said with a laugh. In his heart, he swapped “reassuring” for “strong.”
Guan stroked his face. “Do not be afraid.” He assumed Li Dong had been frightened and was fragile now.
The truth was that psychological vulnerability didn’t exist. Li Dong wasn’t unable to fight back against Zhao Mian, he just didn’t want to ruin the bigger picture.
After giving a warning to Li Dong, Zhao only got angrier the more he thought. He might not love Guan, but Li Dong’s actions and Guan’s “cheating” enraged him.
“Yaoming, good morning.” The next day, Zhao stepped into Guan’s office. “How about lunch together? I have something I want to discuss with you.”
“If there’s something to discuss, discuss it here. I'm not free for lunch,” Guan said without looking up. He was going back to eat with Li Dong.
Li Dong had said that until his mouth healed, he would not go out and meet people.
“You are sure you want to talk here?” Zhao found it absurd. What could possibly keep Guan so busy he did not even have time for lunch?
“Yes,” Guan said, finally looking up. “Is there a problem?”
“No problem. I just think… is there something wrong with us?” Zhao said, incredulous and thin-skinned, hurt by Guan’s attitude. “Tomorrow is our third anniversary. I reminded you last week.” He sat. “Now I am not even sure if you still value this relationship.”
Tomorrow was Friday, still within the promise Guan had made to Li Dong, and he had already promised Zhao. “I will be back tomorrow night,” Guan said. “But Zhao, feelings are not about formalities. So what if you remember every anniversary? Do you care what I need?”
It was certainly not a table full of good dishes, nor a “happy anniversary.”
“What do you need? Novelty?” Zhao’s face was stiff. “I know about you and Lin Mo. You want to promote him, right? I cannot stop you from having your fun. I understand you wanting a young body, but promoting him and competing against me? Where does that leave my face?”
“This happens and all you care about is your face?” Guan asked.
“Should I throw myself on the ground and beg you to leave him? Would you agree to that? If you would, I will cry for you right now,” Zhao said.
Guan Yaoming was speechless. He did not dare say he would stop straying.
Both of them were holding back, each with a secret agenda.
Zhao Mian’s selfish motive was not wanting to sleep with Guan Yaoming. It was good that Guan Yaoming’s desires were satisfied elsewhere. Otherwise, he’d eventually come for him.
Guan’s was that he did not want to give up being with Li Dong. If Zhao could accept that, then the family banner could stay upright while the flags outside fluttered.
That was a man’s ideal life.
“I know you enjoy the novelty Lin Mo gives you,” Zhao said. “I hit him on impulse. I will not do it again. As long as you do not prop him up to compete with me, I have no objection.”
Guan did not think long. “Fine. I can agree not to give him too many resources.”
“What about Director Yang’s new film?” Zhao asked.
“That is Yang’s decision already. Why keep harping on it?” Guan was getting annoyed. “You said you hit Lin Mo? What exactly happened that day?”
“Nothing much. He provoked me in front of Director Yang and I lost my temper,” Zhao said.
“Oh? How did he provoke you? Did he say something nasty?” Guan asked.
“Something like that.” Zhao clearly did not want to dwell on it. “If you cannot eat lunch, I will go. Remember to come back tomorrow.” At the door he added, “You should always stay on guard. If you know what you are doing, just treat this as me nagging.”
Guan raised a brow and, in that instant, felt deeply disappointed.
The man was obviously lying, and he lied with such poise that anyone would think the newcomer had really disrespected his senior in front of Director Yang.
The truth was that Li Dong had not provoked him at all. He had not even said a single disrespectful word, and after being hit, he had not struck back. He was completely innocent.
After this, Guan only felt more that Li Dong was the better one, real and unrestrained.
Youth meant less pollution by the world, and that was adorable. There was no scheming, only straightforward honesty.
Zhao Mian was completely opposite. After being influenced by the entertainment industry for so many years, any innocence and directness were long gone. He’d become a cunning old fox who didn’t show his tail, hiding daggers in his smile.
Sometimes Guan Yaoming couldn’t even guess what he was thinking or whether he truly loved him.
Thinking about it made Guan’s head hurt. Better to be happy in the fresh meat’s arms.
Li Dong’s split lip did not affect their nightly activities. Except for not being able to kiss, everything else was still high quality.
In fact, because he had to remember not to hurt that corner of Li Dong’s mouth, Guan found himself being strangely gentle.
He started to take care of Li Dong’s feelings, becoming unlike himself.
After fooling around with the boss, Li Dong wanted a cigarette. He reached back to open his drawer and felt around inside, discovering he was out of candy.
He nudged the man beside him. “Yao-ge, go downstairs and buy me two lollipops.”
“Why not buy a box?” Guan grumbled. “Two at a time?”
“Two at a time keeps them fresh,” Li Dong said with a huff. “Enough chatter. Are you going or not?” After all this time spent “strategy grinding,” he still could not order the man around? Were all these days of effort for nothing?
“Alright, alright. I am going,” Guan said, resigned. He got up, grabbed his clothes and wallet, and headed out for the lollipops.
“Bring back supper too. I am hungry,” Li Dong called.
“What do you want? And stop eating junk so late. It is bad for you,” Guan said.
“What do I eat if not junk? I cannot cook. I was raised on junk,” Li Dong said.
“Your parents did not cook when you were a kid?” Guan asked.
“Because of work, they barely took care of me,” Li Dong said. “Sh*t, stop nagging. By the time you are back, the weeds will have grown over my grave.”
“Do not swear,” Guan warned immediately. He lifted a hand as if to smack Li Dong’s mouth, then saw the half-healed cut and could not do it. He only stroked it lightly. “Alright. Be good. I will be back.”
Li Dong lay on the bed with a complicated heart and let out a long sigh. He thought about what to do next.
When Guan returned, his mood twisted up even more.
“Oh, you can cook noodles?” Li Dong said around a lollipop, surprised. He stuck close to watch the boss boiling noodles. It pulled up something distant in his memory. There had been someone who cooked noodles like this for him too.
Guan dodged his wolf-pup kisses. “It is only noodles. No need to get emotional… mmph!” He was pressed to the cabinet and kissed. “Your mouth…” he fretted. If it split again, this person would wail the house down.
“It is fine. I want to kiss you now. Even if it bleeds, it is worth it,” Li Dong said.
All of Guan Yaoming’s resistance immediately crumbled. He seemed to understand a bit why he’d inexplicably bought noodles to cook because he felt pity for this person and couldn’t help wanting to care for him a little.
“Thank you for the noodles, Yao-ge,” Li Dong said when they finally sat down to eat, a full half hour later.
Fresh noodles and vegetables tasted wonderful. There was no meat because the big boss thought eating meat late at night was unhealthy.
Since he was so happy, it was time to bring up something unhappy.
“I cannot eat dinner with you tomorrow night,” Guan said. The fresh meat stared at him with a mouthful of noodles, cheeks puffed like a chipmunk. Too cute. Guan coughed. “Tomorrow is a special day. I have plans.”
“Related to Mian-ge?”
How was he this smart and adorable that wanted to kiss him.
“Mm. Our anniversary,” Guan said. “Do not be mad. I am only going back for dinner.”
“Will you spend the night?” Li Dong asked.
In theory, yes. On a day that important, it would be rude to eat and bolt. It would look like a lack of respect.
In practice, also yes. “I will be back the morning after,” Guan said. Breakfast with the fresh meat, then off to the office.
Recently, President Guan had deeply experienced the hardship of two-timing. He had to run back and forth to balance the relationships between his main house, second house, and work.
Like most men who cheat, he suffered and enjoyed at once, carrying huge pressure and needing his little lover’s hugs to release it.
“Oh. Go be with him then, and prepare a gift,” Li Dong said. “Did you buy one?”
“Not yet. I will look tomorrow,” Guan said. He had never felt the need to force the ritual of gifts. Zhao had everything, and could buy whatever he liked himself.
That attitude was exactly what Li Dong wanted to see. He said bluntly, “Then why not just break up with Mian-ge?”
Being together with him would be so much better, no need to run around exhaustingly, no pressure from cheating, and no need to worry about Zhao Mian plotting against him later.
“I thought you understood. I only want to keep things as they are,” Guan said. He could care for the fresh meat, spoil him, but the one he truly loved was still Zhao.
Very good. The scummy shou was still the scummy shou.
Li Dong’s chest tightened. “It is late. I am going to sleep,” he said. “Why don’t you go back now. I feel unwell and I don’t want to see you.”
He got up, went into the bedroom, and shut the door with a bang.
Guan did not think much of it. After these days together, he had decided Li Dong was easy to coax. Whenever he got mad, a little coaxing and some cash would fix it.
If Li Dong knew that was what he thought, he would dump him so fast his mother would not recognize him.
“Do not be petty. I will leave tomorrow. I will stay with you tonight,” Guan said, knocking.
“No need,” Li Dong said coldly. “Go back to your lover. I need to think seriously about what we are.”
Guan’s temper sparked. What had they agreed when they started this? Were all the promises to rein it in just farts?
“I will say it once more. Open the door.”
“I will say it once more too. I do not want to see your scummy face.”
Bang. Guan kicked the door. “Lin Mo, do not push it.”
“Oh wow. Just leaving you outside and you are already throwing a fit at me? You say you care and dote on me. Bullsh*t,” Li Dong shot back. Scummy shou.
“Not opening? Fine,” Guan said, voice cold. “I am leaving right now. You are right. I should go back to the one I love.”
“Go on then. I am only afraid you will not be able to resist coming back,” Li Dong said.
If he had just been bluffing before, now Guan was truly pissed. “F*ck. Where do you get that kind of confidence? You think I cannot live without you?”
“Get lost,” Li Dong said simply.
At that, Guan shut his mouth, turned, and left without another word.
Having reached this point, Guan Yaoming closed his mouth without another word. He directly turned and left.
Physical desire was just temporary novelty-seeking. Eventually it would get boring.
Lin Mo was just a passerby in his life. That’s right, not worth sacrificing his three-year relationship with Zhao Mian for him.
As he left, Guan repeated it to himself with perfect clarity. He was not worried about falling too deep.
He would pull back before he violated his principles.
Li Dong opened the door and looked around. Very good. The big boss had really left. Quite hard-headed. Not bad. I like it.
His face unavoidably showed a slightly disappointed expression. He went back to bed with no sleep in sight.
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