“Yu-ge, get ready, it’s your turn.” Xiao Yitong’s voice rang out, and Yu Junqing groggily opened his eyes and nodded at him, signaling that he understood, though his face was still heavy with sleep.
Xiao Yitong wasn’t worried about him—Yu-ge had been like this for the past few days, and he more or less knew why. Ever since Bo Zong left, Yu-ge had been in this state: working like crazy during shoots, but utterly exhausted during downtime.
After a short nap, Yu Junqing felt much more awake. He straightened up and noticed Wang Shilin clearly keeping an eye on him. He sent a signal to show he was fine, and Wang Shilin returned a hand gesture, indicating it was time to get on set.
“Hey, take it easy. Pushing yourself like this—aren’t you worried your partner will scold you?” Lin Qing had somehow appeared beside him, quietly warning.
Yu Junqing had been working relentlessly these past few days. Lin Qing hadn’t noticed it at first, but now he could see something was off. It seemed that once that man left, Yu Junqing’s whole energy had gone with him—except when filming, when he appeared slightly more lively. Other than that, he looked completely worn out.
“I’ve got it under control,” Yu Junqing smiled. He knew what Lin Qing was worried about—just concerned that he might ruin his health. But he couldn’t exactly tell Lin Qing that he was rushing to finish work so he could get back to Rui-ge and absorb some of his yang energy. In truth, it was all Rui-ge’s fault.
If Rui-ge hadn’t teased him before leaving, he wouldn’t have been working so hard just to get back early and see what surprise Rui-ge had mentioned.
Bo Rui hadn’t stayed long with Yu Junqing either. He had two companies’ employees counting on him, not to mention Liang Xin, that cat devotee whose cat hadn’t been sleeping well lately due to some male feline trouble, and Huang Qian’s gossip squad, who had recently gotten distracted after seeing something they shouldn’t have. Work efficiency had dropped, and the photos Bo Rui had instructed regarding him and Yu Junqing had still somehow caught a fan’s attention.
Fortunately, the fan seemed mature and rational, only saving the pictures without spreading rumors—quite rare.
When Bo Rui returned, he nearly jumped out of his skin thanks to Liang Xin.
Liang Xin was usually the company’s so-called “aloof flower.” At home, he was shameless with his cat, but at work, everyone treated him as the highest-tier elite, untouchable and distant.
Because Liang Xin rushed home to appease his cat after work and rarely interacted with colleagues, the misunderstanding about him was understandable.
But now, Bo Rui was taken aback. Liang Xin was wearing the same suit as if he hadn’t changed in two or three days, and there was a noticeable odor. His hair, usually perfectly styled, hung messily over his forehead. Only his chin hair looked like it had been roughly shaved.
“What’s going on with you?” Bo Rui asked.
Liang Xin looked at Bo Rui, nearly ready to break into tears.
“Bo Zong!”
“What?”
“My cat… my cat… it ran off with a strange man!” His voice was pitiful, as if he’d lost his parents.
Bo Rui rubbed his forehead in frustration. All this urgency was about a cat?
Sometimes, with this assistant, he truly wished he could slap him straight onto a door. No matter how he tried to reason with him, it wouldn’t stick.
“Your cat ran off? It’s probably just in heat,” Bo Rui said, locking the office door with a headache.
Liang Xin shook his head. It was winter—cats don’t go into heat then. He had even tracked the cat; it always disappeared into a nearby complex. It must have bonded with some stranger! Totally abandoning its beloved owner!
Bo Rui was speechless at Liang Xin’s wild imagination.
“Fine, let’s go check,” Bo Rui said. He couldn’t resist Liang Xin’s pleading face any longer. Although, did Liang Xin even remember the cat was male?
To prevent further embarrassment to the company, Bo Rui drove them to Liang Xin’s home. No way he was letting Liang Xin drive in his current state—one wrong move and they’d both be in trouble.
“My cat went missing in that complex!” Liang Xin wailed, gazing at a clearly upscale neighborhood.
Wait—that was Ren Qingyun’s complex? Bo Rui recognized it immediately. How did Liang Xin’s cat end up here? Houses here weren’t cheap—how could he afford it?
Oblivious, Liang Xin didn’t consider his bonus and year-end pay were now at risk. He hurried out of the car, calling for his cat.
“Your Highness! Are you there?”
“Mimi—the daddy is here to get you!”
Bo Rui parked and locked the car, unwilling to get too close to Liang Xin.
“Highness!” Liang Xin took a deep breath and yelled.
“MEOW!” A faint meow reached him; the cat was upstairs in someone’s arms.
“What the hell are you doing with my cat, you pervert!” Liang Xin shouted, glaring at the shirtless man on the balcony.
“You say it’s yours? I call him Mimi, he obeys me. He’s mine now!” The man’s shameless tone almost drove Liang Xin insane.
Bo Rui facepalmed—of course it was Ren Qingyun’s building. The cat had literally walked into the trap.
“Don’t think your beauty can win him over! My cat has seen thousands of beauties—he wouldn’t look at someone like you!” Liang Xin fumed—the cat had really been lured by a handsome man!
Ren Qingyun chuckled, planning to tease Liang Xin before returning the cat. But now, he decided to keep it.
“Ha! Need a cat to like me? Maybe your cat dumped you because you’re ugly!” He walked back inside, closing the balcony door.
Liang Xin was dumbfounded. He had never met someone so shameless.
Bo Rui quietly facepalmed and filmed the two fools for Yu Junqing before leaving.
“Enough. Stop embarrassing yourself. Let’s get the cat,” he said.
Liang Xin gritted his teeth, glaring upstairs, but one push from Bo Rui made him shrink back—he had been relying on Bo Rui to retrieve his “ancestor,” and now he realized he couldn’t.
They took the elevator up and soon reached Ren Qingyun’s door.
“Open the door, I’m outside,” Bo Rui calmly called Ren Qingyun.
Liang Xin’s eyes were full of accusation—how could his boss be in cahoots with a narcissistic cat thief?
Ren Qingyun opened the door, still holding the cat. “What do you want…” The cat meowed and jumped onto Bo Rui’s shoulder.
“Geez, what have you been feeding it? How much does it weigh now?” Bo Rui remarked—this cat was way heavier than before.
“Is the cat okay? Did that pervert harass it?” Liang Xin anxiously hovered around Bo Rui’s shoulder, trying to pet the cat, but it swatted him away.
Ren Qingyun looked at them both, speechless. “What are you doing? I just found a cat on my balcony. It has an owner? But is it yours, Bo Zong, or this messy guy’s?”
Bo Rui ignored Liang Xin’s foolish antics and explained briefly.
The cat had been placed in Liang Xin’s home when he was away on business. By the time Liang Xin returned, the cat was almost unrecognizable.
Bo Rui looked at the messy Liang Xin and thought—this guy was hopeless. Who feeds a newborn cat the wrong food? No wonder the cat still remembered him.
“…You can raise a cat?” Ren Qingyun raised an eyebrow at messy Liang Xin, then at Bo Rui, who surprisingly knew more about cat care.
“No, I just fed him milk three times a day. The cat was obedient, used the litter box, and cleaned itself. He sat on my shoulder and had no other issues,” Bo Rui said, recalling when the cat was still small.
The cat, now back with Liang Xin, purred softly, exhausted. Liang Xin carefully carried him down the stairs, mindful of the elevator, as the cat had a sensitive startle reflex.
——At the same time, Ren Qingyun put on a shirt.
“Why did you call me?” Bo Rui entered, noticing the room was unusually clean. He remembered Ren Qingyun’s studio being messy, full of trash.
Ren Qingyun sat on the sofa, casually resting his feet on the coffee table.
“Don’t play dumb. Didn’t you cover for me in England? That guy didn’t come, but his people sure did,” Ren Qingyun said.
Bo Rui nodded slowly. He hadn’t done much; that guy could’ve solved it easily himself.
“You didn’t do it?” Ren Qingyun asked, surprised that Bo Rui hadn’t confronted him.
“Don’t you know who he is?” Bo Rui replied with a question.
Ren Qingyun awkwardly scratched his nose. Of course he knew—he had been with the man! At first, he hadn’t recognized him, but later had him checked out. The man was a royal, with influence everywhere. Why was he constantly keeping an eye on him? Even if his butt was attractive, it didn’t justify such attention.
Thinking of the money he had blown recklessly, Ren Qingyun felt insecure.
Bo Rui figured he knew enough—no need to worry about the rest.
“So you called just for that?” Bo Rui asked.
“Of course not. That was just a side note. I called to tell you something,” Ren Qingyun’s expression grew serious. Bo Rui straightened up, signaling him to continue.
After returning to the country, Ren Qingyun had mostly free time. Work had paused, and he only contacted his studio online because his residence had been exposed. Most of his time was spent in the study, catching up on pending work.
Then, he noticed something interesting: someone had moved into the apartment next door—a well-hidden resident.
Initially unaware, he later realized the noise at night was… suggestive. Despite good soundproofing, he could hear the neighbor’s activity on the balcony.
Ren Qingyun hadn’t opened his balcony door for a long time, but one day, a cat appeared!
“Mi Huang?” Bo Rui asked.
“Yes, that one,” Ren Qingyun nodded.
Bo Rui now understood: the cat had a habit of being clingy, especially to certain… people.
Ren Qingyun continued enthusiastically. After two visits, the cat was used to the balcony door being open. One day, a young man’s voice came from next door—he was on the balcony, speaking loudly.
“What did he say?” Bo Rui asked.
“At first I didn’t catch it, just heard something about acting, the lead actress, then your guy’s name,” Ren Qingyun explained. Later, the man said, “I’m no longer Zhu Wen, don’t call me that again.”
“Zhu Wen?” Bo Rui immediately recalled the name.
“Yes. I checked the news out of boredom, and it was funny—your guy had a previous disagreement with him. The person in the photo looks different from the man I saw next door!”