Chapter 13
Zhang Yang felt exhausted every day. “Exhaustion” seemed to be the predominant emotion and feeling in her current stage of life.
She spent three hours every day commuting to and from work. To save money, she downgraded from a chain supermarket to a local one, and then further to the local market. She couldn’t afford to order takeout for lunch anymore and had to eat at the monotonous company cafeteria. She had to cut down on her previous fixed expenses such as skincare products, clothes, outings, and movies. To ensure that Ke Yao didn’t have instant noodles for lunch every day, sometimes she had to prepare his lunch a day in advance. When she returned home, she still had to do household chores and teach Ke Yao.
Ke Yao did make progress every day, but he still had a long way to go before becoming a normal person, or even reaching Ke Yu’s level. He learned how to cook noodles, rice, and a few simple dishes. He could also sweep the floor, do the dishes, and watch TV. However, he remained like a robot that could only follow simple instructions, a giant baby. He remembered only what Zhang Yang taught him, without any feedback, adaptability, or ability to apply knowledge in different situations. Zhang Yang often got frustrated and infuriated with him.
Zhang Yang followed the instruction manual meticulously and taught him step by step, but it was too slow, painfully slow. She couldn’t understand why someone would willingly reset him after going through the hardships of teaching him, like raising a child. But she quickly realized that those people, like Mina, only wanted a sex toy, while she wanted a lifelong partner.
However, at the moment, Ke Yao was even unfit to be a sex toy. Zhang Yang was a novice herself, and Ke Yao had no experience whatsoever. It often resulted in pain for her, and after the initial excitement of being intimate with “Sheng Shi” faded away, all that was left was disappointment. Ke Yao couldn’t initiate, please, or engage in foreplay like Ke Yu.
Furthermore, she couldn’t communicate with Ke Yao about it. The shame of discussing sex was one aspect, but the major obstacle was that Ke Yao couldn’t understand her.
Sometimes, she really wanted to call Mina and seek advice.
Of course, she could only think about it. Though she occasionally complained and felt dissatisfied, no matter how tired or disappointed she was, when she looked at Ke Yao’s face and his innocent eyes filled with trust, she could find solace.
She always comforted herself, knowing that at least she didn’t have the pressure of external debts, and everything would gradually get better.
With her life in its current state, her energy for online activities naturally diminished. One day, Zhang Yang suddenly realized that she hadn’t written any jokes, posted P-photos, or edited videos for a long time. Her popularity in the fan circle relied on these talents. Of course, it was also related to the fundraising controversy. Mushroom wanted her to keep a low profile during this period and bounce back after her brother’s birthday.
Moreover, although Zhang Yang didn’t want to admit it, she had to admit that since she had Ke Yao, her obsession with Sheng Shi had indeed cooled down to some extent. After all, the desire for something unattainable was the primary motivation for pursuit.
Thinking this way, Zhang Yang couldn’t help but feel guilty. Sheng Shi’s birthday was coming soon, and she wholeheartedly immersed herself in secretly preparing support while at work.
On Sheng Shi’s birthday, the hashtag with the date soared to the top of the real-time hot search on Weibo. Starting from midnight, she would release a fan support material every hour. What would have been an ordinary day was endowed with special memories, and every social media platform where fans gathered was filled with this unprecedented and grand birthday celebration.
His single climbed to the top of the sales charts, the endorsement of a cosmetics product sold over a million units, 27 newspapers dedicated pages to birthday wishes, advertisements on the big screens of Times Square, a compilation of well wishes from numerous senior colleagues and friends, support messages on 27 skyscrapers in 27 cities, millions of donations to charity… Every aspect was astonishing, filled with fans’ love and money, and the execution power of countless people behind the scenes.
Apart from the contributions from fans, various cooperating businesses naturally didn’t miss out on this level of popularity. They all came up with extraordinary strategies, and numerous celebrities joined in the celebration.
This birthday support was so exaggerated that even bystanders felt it was crazy, and fans of other celebrities couldn’t help but feel jealous. The rumored fundraising amount of 30 to 40 million yuan was almost a potential Guinness World Record. As a fan of Sheng Shi, naturally, she felt proud, like standing on the summit and looking down at the small mountains. Every cell in her body exuded pride.
As Sheng Shi was filming on set, he didn’t have a birthday party, but he released a gratitude video in the evening.
The man in the video was incredibly handsome, with a radiant and glowing aura in his eyes. Yes, he had just celebrated a perhaps one of the most luxurious birthdays in the world, so he should be radiant with confidence. He was confident, and Zhang Yang felt confident and immensely proud.
Look, what an extraordinary man he is, he has everything, he is perfect in every way, and so many people love him. He has all of this because he deserves it, and because they are willing to give it to him. They idolize him, placing him on a pedestal for worship. He is free from any worldly worries, and they, the ones who love him, are the most tasteful and fortunate people in the world.
As Zhang Yang excitedly depicted Sheng Shi’s smile in her mind, she suddenly heard a noise behind her. She pulled her phone out of her emotions and turned around, feeling a slight stiffness in her body.
Ke Yao was sitting on the couch, having turned on the TV. He was wearing the 69-yuan pajamas set that Zhang Yang bought from the supermarket. It had shrunk a bit after washing, so when he crossed one long leg and placed it on the couch, the other pant leg had rolled up to his calf. The collar of his shirt was loose and deformed, and his hair hung down, looking limp.
If you only looked at Ke Yao, he was undoubtedly a lazy handsome guy, but Zhang Yang’s eyes, which had just shifted from Sheng Shi to Ke Yao, suddenly felt a sense of unease.
They had the exact same face, the same physique, but they were different, completely different. One was glamorous, the other was dull.
Zhang Yang felt a twinge in her heart.
She should be happy. On Sheng Shi’s birthday, she couldn’t be with the real Sheng Shi, but she had Ke Yao. She was luckier than any woman in the world who loved Sheng Shi but couldn’t have him. She even prepared a cake, intending to celebrate Ke Yao’s birthday.
But at this moment, she couldn’t quite describe the feeling in her heart.
Zhang Yang shook off this indescribable emotion and called out, “Brother.”
“Mm.” Ke Yao didn’t look at her, his eyes fixed on the cartoon for people with intellectual disabilities on the TV, thoroughly engrossed.
“You should change your clothes,” Zhang Yang frowned.
“Mm.”
“Brother!” Zhang Yang called out again.
Only then did Ke Yao turn his head, “Huh?”
“Come here.”
Zhang Yang entered the room and took out the outfit the company had given her – the one from the idol drama.
Ke Yao obediently changed into the clothes.
Zhang Yang looked at Ke Yao, still not quite satisfied. The clothes were on, but the hairstyle was off. Since she couldn’t take Ke Yao to a hair salon, she had to do it herself. The result was a messy cut with no style or layers. She pulled Sheng Shi into the bathroom and used hair gel to style his hair. The resulting hairstyle was entirely supported by his face.
Zhang Yang couldn’t expect too much. She held Ke Yao’s hand and smiled, “Today is brother’s birthday. Let’s celebrate together.”
Ke Yao looked puzzled, “Today isn’t my birthday.”
Zhang Yang paused for a moment.
“My birthday is on July 12th.”
Zhang Yang didn’t want him to ruin the atmosphere. “I said today is today.”
Ke Yao hesitated for a moment, then nodded obediently, “Okay.”
Zhang Yang brought out the birthday cake, lit the candles, and excitedly said, “When I turn off the lights, you can make a wish.”
“What is making a wish?” Ke Yao asked.
“It means you say three things you hope will happen.”
Ke Yao nodded and sat on the chair, looking at the cake intently. He earnestly said, “First, I hope I can see my little brother. Second, I hope I can eat potato chips. Third, I hope I can go to the supermarket.”
Zhang Yang felt a mix of heartache and amusement at these three wishes.
Ke Yao turned to look at her, “Is it okay?”
“… It’s okay. Blow out the candles.”
Zhang Yang turned on the lights, touched Ke Yao’s head, and said softly, “Does brother really want to go shopping at the supermarket?”
Ke Yao nodded, “We can go out.”
“I’ll try to take you out in the future, but you know, your face can’t be seen by others.”
“I know.”
Zhang Yang felt increasingly uncomfortable in her heart. Perhaps she wished more than Ke Yao that he could bask in the sunlight. She imagined that if today, on this day when the whole world was focused on Sheng Shi, she posted a photo of herself and “Sheng Shi” embracing intimately, she would also become the center of attention and the focus of public opinion. But she could only fantasize about it.
It felt frustrating. It was like having top-tier wealth, status, and beauty, but no one knew about it. She could only appreciate herself alone. What meaning did it have then?
Suddenly, Zhang Yang felt a sense of emptiness. She quickly finished her cake and sent Ke Yao off to bed. She curled up on the couch, holding her phone, watching the lively scenes in this little box, the liveliness of Sheng Shi, shining in her heart like a light.
Suddenly, she noticed a comment under Sheng Shi’s Weibo post that had been pushed up due to a high number of replies. It was from Yue Chen Guang: “Brother, happy birthday.”
Zhang Yang rolled her eyes and opened the WeChat group, only to find everyone discussing it.
“Damn, he’s here to gain attention again.”
“Damn, he’s so disgusting. He’ll do anything for attention. Brother has been avoiding him for a year, and there hasn’t been any interaction.”
“He’s sticking to him precisely because Brother is avoiding him. Otherwise, he would have been completely ignored.”
“Should we control the comments?”
“Not today. It’s Brother’s birthday, so let’s restrain ourselves for the sake of public perception.”
“Let’s listen to Mushroom Sister.”
“Haha, do you think when he posted that comment, he was pretending to be indifferent while secretly burning with jealousy? He can never have such status in his entire life.”
“Yeah, and his birthday is coming up soon. There’s no harm in comparing. It hurts only when there’s a comparison.”
“I hope whether it’s Brother’s birthday or his own, there won’t be any CP fans dancing in front of me. Otherwise, I might lose it.”
“There are already calls for sugar comments under that post. You better not click on it.”
“Where do these CP fans come from? Even ordinary people can see that Brother doesn’t want to be associated with that attention seeker, yet they keep pushing it.”
Followed by a series of agreement.
However, it didn’t take long for the group to fall silent, and Zhang Yang fell silent as well, because she saw that Sheng Shi had replied to Yue Chen Guang.
Within less than an hour since Yue Chen Guang’s comment was posted, Sheng Shi replied to him.
Although it was only three simple words: “Thank you, haha.”
Zhang Yang’s face flushed in an instant, feeling like she had been slapped.
Someone in the group said, “Why did he reply to him…”
Someone quickly intervened, “Brother has replied to so many other celebrities’ well-wishes. It’s just common courtesy.”
“But does he have to reply so quickly…?”
Mushroom also spoke up, her tone not pleasant, “It’s just common courtesy. Not replying would give people something to talk about.”
The person persisted, “So, next week, on his birthday, Brother will also send him well-wishes?”
“Stop speculating. It’s just common courtesy among adults. Brother is a gentleman. He won’t embarrass anyone publicly.”
“Yeah, just common courtesy.”
“Am I speculating? Even if he replied a bit later, wouldn’t it be better? Within an hour, look at the CPF fans below. People would think it’s Brother’s birthday or CPF’s New Year.”
Mushroom’s tone was not good, “Enough already. It’s the attention seeker throwing himself at Brother. Brother has no choice. We’ve already said not to speculate and to focus on supporting. Let’s not talk about it anymore.”
The person fell silent.
Soon, someone in the group changed the subject.
Everyone knew that this was basic etiquette, but everyone in this group was a staunch fan, naturally not feeling happy.
They were rivals with Yue Chen Guang’s fans, engaged in a bitter feud, unable to coexist. They hoped that Sheng Shi would not be bound by the CP ship, not be exploited by Yue Chen Guang for attention. When they starred together in that crime drama, both sides hyped up the CP ship, but as soon as it finished airing, they immediately purged their respective fan groups, no interaction, no appearances together. Although Yue Chen Guang’s company sent press releases and coordinated articles every day to tie them together for CP fans, such behavior disgusted Sheng Shi’s dedicated fans, and they abandoned Yue Chen Guang like worn-out shoes.
Zhang Yang, like all the dedicated fans, believed that they were protecting Sheng Shi, and Sheng Shi understood them, understood their feelings, and firmly stood with them, resolutely not giving any exposure to Yue Chen Guang.
But today, at the birthday celebration where fans were burning themselves to shine for Sheng Shi, he replied to Yue Chen Guang’s birthday wishes, causing CPF fans to celebrate and making the dedicated fans’ faces ache.
Zhang Yang felt uneasy in her heart. She understood Sheng Shi, because of courtesy, because of politeness, and maybe even because some businesses wanted him to cooperate. But she was still disappointed, still upset.
Even if Sheng Shi had replied a few hours later, wouldn’t it be better?
In Zhang Yang’s view, this incident was a problem with Sheng Shi’s team. Social media accounts of artists should be managed by the public relations team. She would never blame Sheng Shi himself for it, so she didn’t anticipate the storm that would be stirred up by this incident.
