Chapter 43

 It’s simply incomprehensible.

Zhou Ziheng didn’t say a word the whole way, nor did he want to listen to Xia Xiqing and Shang Siru talking, so he put on his headphones, closed his eyes, and pretended to be asleep. The randomly played Japanese pop songs seemed to have been enchanted by someone, with lyrics that struck Zhou Ziheng’s heart with every line.

　 [Dangers what we’re doing. Everything we’re doing is playing with fire.

We lock lips to ruin. We kiss our way to destruction.

Don’t you trust love? Don’t you believe in love?

Never trust love. Never believe in it.]

　 What a terrible song, Zhou Ziheng impatiently pressed the earphone remote twice and switched to another song. The music in the earphones changed from a psychedelic electronic female voice to simple guitar chords.

[We all know how to play the game, seeking the happiest path with the lowest risk.

Honesty isn’t an option, and it’s okay if things don’t go as planned.

　 The conversation should jump around cleverly, the distance should be ambiguous and light.

No matter who crosses the line first, it should be forgotten by tomorrow.]

Excuse me?

Who wrote the algorithm for this music app’s daily recommendations?

Is it the devil?

　 Zhou Ziheng unlocked his phone, ready to open the daily recommendation playlist to see what devilish songs it had recommended today. Just then, a WeChat message popped up—it was his best friend and childhood buddy Zhao Ke.

[Kezi: Ziheng, when are you coming back to Beijing? Old Four just returned from the team a few days ago. Let’s go out and hang out together.]

　 Lao Si also grew up with him in the same military compound. He was a bit of a troublemaker, and their relationship wasn’t particularly close, but they were still childhood friends who grew up together.

[Hengheng: I’m not going. I’m returning to Beijing for an audition. My schedule is packed lately.]

[Kezi: Can’t we just stop working so hard? What’s the point of flying around like Superman all day long and not even having any personal entertainment? Look at you, you’re already 20 and haven’t even had a relationship yet. Go out and take a look around, anyone who’s good-looking and over 180 cm tall isn’t a lifelong single. ]

[Hengheng: The emperor isn’t in a hurry, but the eunuch is. ]

　 [Ke Zi: Your older brother Ke is handsome and kind-hearted, so I won’t bother arguing with you. Speaking of which, you’re not still thinking about that little sister from when you were a kid, are you? That’s ancient history. She might be married with kids by now. Can’t you think about someone else?]

Zhou Ziheng wanted to argue with him. But when he saw the words “think about someone else,” he felt uneasy. Although he was only 20 years old, he had been in the entertainment industry for 14 years. After being in the industry for so long, there were many people who pursued him, but he had never been moved. It wasn’t that he really had no expectations for love, but because of a childhood memory, he still couldn’t let go.

　 To be honest, he could barely remember the girl’s face anymore, and sometimes when he thought back on it, he felt like a fool.

He thought it would always be like this, waiting in the vast sea of people. But then another person burst into his life, and it was a man—no, a scoundrel.

But Zhou Ziheng had to admit, he was genuinely a bit moved.

　 He did feel guilty for shifting his feelings to someone else, but it was just one unresolved issue being replaced by another.

[Ke Zi: Why aren’t you replying? You’re not upset, are you?]

[Zi Heng: I’m not upset, you idiot.]

　 [Ke Zi: If you’re not upset, then change your profile picture. Wearing that little flower for so many years is so girly.]

[Zi Heng: Get lost.]

Zhou Zi Heng exited the chat interface and clicked on his profile picture.

　 “We’re here, Ziheng, get out of the car.” Shang Sirui stretched lazily, put on his hat, and pushed Xia Xiqing. Xia Xiqing saw Zhou Ziheng staring at his profile picture and also stared blankly, then got ready to stand up.

Zhou Ziheng replied, put his phone back in his pocket, and got out of the car.

　 The three of them were staying on the same floor, while the assistants’ rooms were two floors below. As they got on the elevator, they discussed and decided to go back to their own rooms to take a shower before heading to Shang Siru’s room.

Shang Siru was staying at the end of the corridor, Xia Xiqing was next door, and Zhou Ziheng was across the hall.

　 Halfway through his shower, Xia Xiqing realized he hadn’t brought any spare clothes. He had left Xia Zhixu’s house with nothing, and he wasn’t keen on wearing the hotel’s bathrobe. So he stepped out of the bathroom naked, wrapped the blanket around himself, and pondered his options.

Shang Sirui was shorter than him, so his clothes wouldn’t fit comfortably.

　 Thinking this, he decided Zhou Ziheng was the more reliable option. Wrapped in the blanket and sitting cross-legged on the bed, Xia Xiqing quickly sent a WeChat message.

Zhou Ziheng, who was drying his hair, heard his phone ring and walked over to check it.

[Terrorist: Handsome guy, can I borrow some clothes?]

　 Does this person have a fetish for wearing other people’s clothes?

[Moral Exemplar: No way.]

　 [Terrorist: Fine, then I’ll just play with you naked.]

…

[Moral Exemplar: What kind of clothes do you want?]

Xia Xiqing couldn’t stop laughing as he read the WeChat message. How funny this person was.

[Terrorist: Just bring me any set of clothes. I didn’t bring any clothes to change into.]

　 Zhou Ziheng opened his suitcase, took out one item after another, and laid them on the bed. They were all clothes he had worn before, with no new ones.

　 Just reading this sentence, Zhou Ziheng could imagine Xia Xiqing’s carefree expression.

[Moral Exemplar: … I don’t have any new ones.]

[Terrorist: Just wash them. Anyway, whatever you don’t bring, I won’t wear. You decide.]

　 After waiting on the bed for about ten minutes, there was a knock on the door. Xia Xiqing wrapped himself in the blanket and walked barefoot to the door. When he opened it, he saw Zhou Ziheng with his hair still damp, wearing a cotton black long-sleeve shirt and gray pants, looking exactly like the fresh-faced school heartthrob from a novel.

　 This face really does get more attractive the more you look at it. Xia Xiqing marveled at his own high standards of aesthetics.

“Here I am.” Reaching out from under the blanket, he grabbed the folded blanket across his chest and leaned against the doorframe, smiling at Zhou Ziheng.

　 His hair was completely untouched by a hairdryer; after sitting for a while, only the top of his head was slightly dry. Droplets of water trickled down his slightly longer strands, pooling at the tips of his black hair, brushing against his fair neck, and trickling down his collarbone and the exposed expanse of his chest.

　 Before arriving, Zhou Ziheng had mentally prepared himself, expecting him to be hiding in the bathroom like a TV drama protagonist, reaching out a hand from the door to take his clothes. But this was the scene he encountered. He lowered his eyes, unwilling to look.

　 “Come in.” Unable to let go, Xia Xiqing hooked his ankle with his foot and used his shoulder to push the door, trying to close it. Zhou Ziheng didn’t know how it happened, but when the door slammed shut, he suddenly realized that he could have just left the clothes and walked away. Why did he come in?

I give up.

　 Xia Xiqing walked back to the bed barefoot, facing him. Zhou Ziheng’s eyes involuntarily glanced at his bare feet on the ground. His ankles were very white, with deep indentations on both sides. As he walked, his ankle bones protruded, and above that were the long, smooth lines of his calves.

　 He’s crazy, what is he looking at?

　 “They are a bit too big. Your size is really quite large.”

Xia Xiqing’s words interrupted him. Zhou Ziheng turned his head in surprise and saw Xia Xiqing holding his black underwear with both hands, smiling suggestively. “Kids these days are really well-nourished.”

　 Zhou Ziheng’s ears burned, and he rushed forward to snatch the underwear back, his anger evident. “You talk too much. Don’t wear them!”

Xia Xiqing, who had already reached out with both hands, had the blanket fall to his waist, exposing his entire upper body. He smiled innocently, looking up at Zhou Ziheng. “It’s empty. That’s not good. It’ll be drafty when I walk, and my baby will get cold.”

“Disgusting,” Zhou Ziheng said viciously, turning and walking away. After taking a few steps, he turned back, threw the underwear on the bed, and quickly left Xia Xiqing’s room, slamming the door shut.

　 Xia Xiqing was like a tourist at the zoo teasing a lion cub, finding it amusing to watch him get upset. Looking at the black underwear Zhou Ziheng had thrown on the bed, Xia Xiqing whistled twice.

To be honest, the size was really not small.

Most people couldn’t handle that…

　 As soon as Zhou Ziheng returned to his room, Shang Sirui’s message came through, urgent as ever. He didn’t even sit down, just gulped down a mouthful of cold water and headed to his room. Shang Sirui’s door was open, and he was sitting on the bed with a face mask on, while the table by the sofa was laid out with sushi, sashimi, and sake.

　 As soon as Shang Sirui saw Zhou Ziheng enter, he excitedly jumped off the bed, pulled him to sit on the sofa, and enthusiastically recommended the dishes from this Japanese restaurant to him.

This mouth would be wasted if it weren’t used for sales. Zhou Ziheng was thinking this when he noticed a bottle of chilled vodka on the table. “Did you order this too?”

　 “Yes.”

“You’re crazy,” Zhou Ziheng frowned. “This stuff packs a punch. Do you even want to go out tomorrow?”

　 “It’s fine. Didn’t I tell you I have nothing to do tomorrow? I plan to sleep until the afternoon.” Shang Sirui pouted, twiddling his fingers, and then collapsed onto Zhou Ziheng’s shoulder with a pitiful expression. “I haven’t had a good night’s sleep in a whole week.”

　 Zhou Ziheng pushed him away with a look of disgust. “Do whatever you want. I have to fly back to Beijing tomorrow, so I’m not drinking.”

“You can mix it with sake.” Shang Sirui tugged at his arm. “You can’t handle a couple of sips? Are you even a man?”

　 Zhou Ziheng rolled his eyes and heard a sound at the door.

“Xiqing? Just close the door.” Shang Sirui peeled off his face mask and slapped his cheeks, splashing the essence all over Zhou Ziheng’s face. Zhou Ziheng was disgusted and stood up.

　 The door closed.

Xia Xiqing walked in from the entrance, and Zhou Ziheng’s gaze involuntarily followed him. He was wearing a gray-blue long-sleeved hoodie that was a size too big, with wide sleeves covering half his palms. The excessively long black sweatpants were rolled up, revealing his smooth ankles.

　 Though he was quite tall, the clothes made him look a bit petite. He had somehow found a hairband, but the bangs he tied up were too long to stand upright like an apple stem; instead, they swayed like a small sapling toppled by the wind, tilting to one side and swaying with his movements.  

 Seeing his own clothes on him, Zhou Ziheng felt an inexplicable thrill in his heart, and he couldn’t help but freeze in place.

It seemed perfectly normal when he wore them himself, but why did they look so…

…innocent on him?

“Hey, handsome, you stood up to welcome me,”

　 The words immediately dampened Zhou Ziheng’s earlier flutter.

He awkwardly sat back down on the sofa, picked up his chopsticks, and stuffed a piece of sushi into his mouth.

　 Xia Xiqing walked over to Zhou Ziheng’s side with the intention of sitting down, but seeing that Zhou Ziheng didn’t move, he kicked his foot. Shang Sirui, who was observant, sat on another sofa, and Zhou Ziheng reluctantly moved to the other end of the double sofa to let Xia Xiqing sit down.

　 Shang Sirui placed the chopsticks in Xia Xiqing’s hand and casually complimented her, “Xiqing, that dress looks great on you. What brand is it?”

“This isn’t…” Xia Xiqing began to speak, but before he could finish, his chin was grabbed, and a piece of sushi was forcefully shoved into his mouth. He stared at Zhou Ziheng with wide eyes, but the latter seemed oblivious, lowering his head to pour himself a cup of sake.

Shang Sirui smiled and gave Zhou Ziheng a knowing look, “You two finally stopped sulking.”

　 “Who’s sulking?” Zhou Ziheng drank half a cup of sake and slammed the cup back onto the coffee table.

“Whoever’s sulking knows it. I’m not blind.” Shang Sirui muttered under his breath, then changed the subject as if nothing had happened, “Let’s eat, let’s eat. I’m starving.”

　 Xia Xiqing finished chewing the sushi in his mouth, then picked up Zhou Ziheng’s cup and drank the remaining half cup of sake in one gulp.

Zhou Ziheng was startled and snatched the cup from his hand. “There’s a new one right there. Why didn’t you take that one?”

　 “You’ve been feeding me sushi, so why are you afraid I’ll use your cup?” Xia Xiqing stuck out his red tongue and licked the corner of his mouth where a bit of sake had spilled. “I don’t care if it’s new or old.”

　 It was a double entendre. Zhou Ziheng was irritated by his lighthearted tone. He could only pretend not to understand and silently lower his head to eat.

Shang Sirui ate while holding his phone and scrolling through the comments on his selfie, endlessly sharing them with them. “My goodness, they’re scrolling too fast for me to keep up.”

　 “What are you scrolling through?” Xia Xiqing asked casually. Shang Sirui randomly picked one to read aloud, “San San is actually being aggressive! Xiqing is so cute, I want to…” After finishing the sentence in one breath, Shang Sirui glanced at Xia Xiqing and laughed uncontrollably while lying on the sofa.

　 Xia Xiqing shrugged, “I’m used to it. Every time I scroll through Weibo, the most common phrase I see is ‘I want to sleep with you.’”

If these naive girls knew you were a shameless scoundrel, I wonder if they’d still want to sleep with you. Zhou Ziheng, who was silently eating, muttered to himself.

　 “That’s because you’re too good-looking. Your face is what they call a ‘movie face’ nowadays—the kind of face that’s both beautiful and full of stories.” Shang Sirui flattered him while opening the bottle of chilled vodka with a corkscrew and pouring himself a drink. He suddenly had an idea, “Hey, just drinking is boring. Let’s play a game.”

　 Zhou Ziheng frowned, “Recording the show has made me so sensitive that hearing the word ‘game’ makes me uncomfortable.”

“Now you know how tough it is to be the Killer, right?” Shang Sirui sighed, “Last episode, my heart was racing so fast it felt like it was going to jump out of my chest.” “Never mind. Here’s what we’ll do,” Shang Sirui picked up the small bottle of sake that was almost empty, poured out the last bit of alcohol, cleared away a few takeout boxes, and placed the bottle horizontally in the middle. “We don’t have any cards, so let’s play the oldest game of Truth or Dare.”

Zhou Ziheng remained expressionless. “I object.”

　 Shang Sui smiled and quickly rebutted, “Objection invalid. If you eat my food, you have to listen to me.”

Xia Xiqing smiled lazily, “I have no objections.”

Of course you have no objections; you wouldn’t tell the truth anyway. Zhou Ziheng thought to himself.

　 Since they were all public figures, playing Truth or Dare wasn’t realistic, so they had to change the rules. “The person the bottle points to has to tell the truth, and the other two can discuss and ask a question that must be answered.”

“What if you don’t want to answer?” Zhou Ziheng asked, “There must be times when you can’t answer.”

　 Shang Sirui hummed in agreement, then suddenly raised his chin. “Then drink a whole glass of vodka.”

The game started off uninteresting, with none of the three letting loose. Zhou Ziheng was lucky—he wasn’t chosen by the bottle once. Shang Sirui, on the other hand, drank at least three glasses and his face was red. Zhou Ziheng glanced at Xia Xiqing, who had also drunk a glass but looked completely unaffected. Of course, as a playboy, he should have a high tolerance for alcohol.

“No, no, that’s not fair,” Shang Siru waved his hand and changed the rules again. “Each person can only use their three chances to avoid drinking once, and they must answer the question.”

　 Once the rules were changed, Shang Siru pinched the middle of the bottle with his fingers and spun it. The green, semi-transparent glass bottle circled on the table, slowing down gradually until it finally came to a stop, pointing straight at Zhou Ziheng.

　 What bad luck. Zhou Ziheng thought about tomorrow’s flight and really didn’t want to have his privacy invaded. After some internal struggle, he chose to down a glass of vodka. Zhou Ziheng, who wasn’t good at drinking to begin with, was harshly choked by the strong liquor and coughed for a while.

　 “You can’t hold your liquor,” Xia Xiqing reached out and gently patted his back.

His heart suddenly began to race without warning. Zhou Ziheng attributed it to the side effects of alcohol. He straightened his back and roughly wiped his lips with the back of his hand.

“I heard that people who can’t hold their liquor are unlucky at the dinner table.” Xia Xiqing tilted his head and smiled at him, his collarbone exposed from the wide neckline, glowing white under the hotel lights.

Are people from the south all this fair-skinned? The heat from the alcohol made Zhou Ziheng feel uncomfortable all over.

“Come on, let’s do it again. Xiqing, your turn.”

　 Xia Xiqing reached out, his slender fingers gently gripping the cylindrical bottle. Zhou Ziheng had always thought his hands were beautiful, but at that moment, he felt too shy to look and could only turn his head awkwardly.

“Ah! It’s Ziheng again! Hahaha, does Xiqing’s mouth have a special touch?”

　 “What?” Zhou Ziheng stared in shock at the bottle on the table pointing directly at him. “I’m not playing anymore. I’m not playing anymore.”

　 “Hey, are you even a man?” Shang Sirui was drunk, slurring his words, but he still wouldn’t let go of Zhou Ziheng. “Hey, I can’t drink this time. I need to think of a question… um… when was your first love?”

　 Zhou Ziheng gave up, “I never had a first love. I’ve been single since birth.”

“What? I don’t believe you.” Shang Sirui placed his palm over his mouth, his cheeks flushed, and whispered, “I’ve had girlfriends before.”

“Sirui, you get drunk too easily.” Xia Xiqing held a wine glass, gently rotating his wrist and swirling the wine inside, adding to Shang Siru’s question with a soft tone, as if flirting, “But you must have someone you like, right?” As he spoke, his beautiful almond-shaped eyes glanced at Zhou Ziheng’s profile, the corners of his eyes slightly raised, quite alluring.

　 “When was the first time you liked someone?”

　 If Xia Xiqing weren’t there, he might have been able to tell the story as a joke, since Shang Sirui was drunk and probably wouldn’t remember anyway. But Xia Xiqing was sitting right next to him, and suddenly he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

But he quickly dismissed his own hesitation.

　 What was there to be shy about? It was just a crush. It was as if he was afraid of him…

“Hurry up and say it.”

“Six years old.”

Shang Sirui screamed, “Holy crap! Zhou Ziheng, you’re amazing! You figured it out so early!”

　 Zhou Ziheng fidgeted with his hair, “It wasn’t really love. It was just my first time acting, and I was so nervous that I trembled every time I saw the camera. Plus, we were filming in a park with lots of people around, and we couldn’t get it right after several takes. During a break, I sneaked away and met a girl who took care of me and even folded…” He paused suddenly, “She encouraged me. If it weren’t for her, I might not have continued acting.”

　 Xia Xiqing suddenly laughed, but it was more like a forced smile. “A girl? How old was she?”

“Oh my god, what kind of fairy tale plot is this? Childhood sweethearts!” Shang Sirui giggled.

Zhou Ziheng kicked him. “She was much taller than me, probably an older sister.”

　 “An older sister?” Shang Sirui laughed even more exaggeratedly, “Hahahaha, so your preference is for older women!”

　 Xia Xiqing didn’t mock him for this, but just sat on the side eating slowly. This surprised Zhou Ziheng a little, but he didn’t bother to think about it too much. He figured that such childish stories were nothing to a veteran like him, not even worth laughing at.

He exerted force on his wrist, and the wine bottle started spinning.

　 After a few dozen seconds, the bottle’s mouth slowly came to a stop in front of Xia Xiqing.

“Xiqing! Xiqing! Xiqing…” Shang Sirui was completely drunk.

Xia Xiqing looked resigned as he tapped Shang Sirui’s foot with his own. “What question do you want to ask?”

　 Shang Sirui, who was dizzy, smiled stupidly and repeated Xia Xiqing’s words, “What question do you want to ask~”

　 For a moment, no one asked Xia Xiqing any questions about losing the game, and the atmosphere suddenly grew cold. In fact, Zhou Ziheng’s mind was flooded with countless questions. He had always known nothing about Xia Xiqing, just as Shang Sirui had said—he was clearly a man with a story.

But he couldn’t bring himself to ask.

　 “No one’s asking, huh? Then I’ll punish myself with a drink.” Xia Xiqing lowered his eyes, his eyelashes trembling slightly under the warm yellow light of the hotel. He picked up the glass filled with vodka, tilted his head back to drink it, but then heard Zhou Ziheng’s long-overdue question.

“…Why are you afraid of the dark?”