Boxes of turtle jelly were being delivered to the studio’s materials warehouse. The administrative front desk was standing under the blazing sun, counting the quantity and payment with the logistics delivery guy. Li Mu, who had just returned from outside the studio, was puzzled. Upon entering the office, he saw Bi Yuan holding a jar of turtle jelly and eating it with relish.
“Did you arrange for Hua Hua to buy the turtle jelly?”
“Yeah, I’m feeling irritable, and turtle jelly helps calm the nerves.” Leaning back with his legs crossed, Bi Yuan sat casually on the sofa in Li Mu’s office. He had just dropped Xu Yang off at school and was there to consult Li Mu about some matters. While eating, he complained, “It’s better when it’s chilled. Eating it at room temperature feels weird. I wonder if it even works.”
“What are you so irritable about?” Seeing that Bi Yuan seemed to have been waiting specifically for him to return, Li Mu closed the office door and lowered the glass curtain to block the view from outside. He turned back to the sofa, opened a can of turtle jelly, and said: “Just when Yueyue’s matter had settled down, you go and create such a mess for me. I haven’t even mentioned how annoyed I am yet.”
Struggling to open the lid of the turtle jelly, Li Mu said, “I wanted to ask you this morning, but I couldn’t ask with Xu Yang around, afraid it would upset him. Now we can finally clarify it.”
“Clarify what?” After finishing one can, Bi Yuan wanted to open another, but Li Mu stopped him with a startled cry: “Are you that angry? You’ve already eaten two cans, why do you want more?”
Bi Yuan glanced at Li Mu, who was holding his hand to stop him from eating the turtle jelly, and complained, “Why are you acting like my Aunt Lin? What’s wrong with eating a few jars of turtle jelly?” After saying that, he ignored Li Mu’s disapproving gaze and continued eating as he pleased.
Knowing that Bi Yuan’s way of thinking was different from others, Li Mu didn’t bother anymore and asked him, “Let’s talk about the serious matter. What’s going on with you? I already introduced you to a video editor. If you don’t want to use them, that’s fine, but why did you go to your own studio?”
Li Mu found Bi Yuan’s actions completely baffling!
When he found out that Bi Yuan wanted to hire someone to edit Xu Yang’s film, Li Mu had tried to dissuade him. In his opinion, Xu Yang was still a simple-minded person at heart, and if it weren’t for his sister’s illness, he would never have agreed to do such a despicable thing. But Bi Yuan was as stubborn as a bull, and no one could dissuade him from doing what he wanted. So the next day, Li Mu found a reliable person and sent their contact information to Bi Yuan.
After that, Li Mu didn’t ask Bi Yuan about the production of the pornographic video again. Plus, Xu Yang came to work at the studio, and there was nothing unusual about how the two of them interacted, so he didn’t think much of it. But he never imagined that Bi Yuan would actually find someone from the studio to edit the video for him.
“What did Xu Yang do to offend you? You slept with him and then made him shoot such a video. That’s bad enough, but you also found someone you know to edit the video for him! How could you do that? Are you really planning to release the video?” When it came to scolding Bi Yuan, his mouth was like a machine gun, chattering on and on without stopping.
“I didn’t plan to release it!” Bi Yuan hurriedly rebutted, “I never intended to release his video!” In truth, he couldn’t bear to release it; from the moment he recorded it, Bi Yuan had never intended to make those things public.
“If you weren’t going to post it, why did you edit it? You even asked me for the editor’s contact information, found someone yourself, and caused such a big fuss that it ended up at the police station!” Hearing Bi Yuan’s anxious rebuttal, Li Mu also grew impatient, his voice rising in volume. He was truly angry, unable to understand what was going on in Bi Yuan’s mind. Xu Yang was such a good person, yet he had ruined him like this.
Bi Yuan knew he was in the wrong. This was indeed his mistake. He didn’t know why he had acted impulsively and actually found someone to edit Xu Yang’s video, but Bi Yuan was also confused. He said, “I’ve known Wenhao for so many years. We were classmates in college. Who would have thought he would do something like this? Besides, I never received the contact information for the editor you sent me.” After saying that, Bi Yuan silently ate his turtle jelly and stopped arguing with Li Mu, sitting on the sofa like a child who had been scolded by his parents, sulking as Li Mu continued to reprimand him.
“If you didn’t receive it, why didn’t you ask me again? Wenhao’s editing is good, and he’s very diligent, but after all, he has to work with Xu Yang. Such things are unpredictable!” Li Mu found Bi Yuan utterly incomprehensible. “You keep saying you like him, but you’re really… I just don’t understand you!”
This time, Li Mu was truly angered by Bi Yuan. After a barrage of accusations, he was so furious that he couldn’t even care that he had just told Bi Yuan he had eaten too much turtle jelly. He sat down on the sofa, opened another can of turtle jelly for himself, ate half of it, and then asked Bi Yuan angrily, “How did you and that kid Wen Hao end up fighting?”
Bi Yuan glanced at him and finally put down the turtle jelly he had been eating nonstop. Thinking about this matter, he still felt uneasy. He explained that when he had asked Wen Hao to make the video, they had reached a verbal agreement. This included that the video itself could not be released without permission and that the matter could not be discussed with others.
“I thought that after knowing him for so many years, this shouldn’t be a problem. Plus, after Yangyang came to the studio, I was busy handling Yueyue’s matters for a while and didn’t pay attention. It wasn’t until I saw him intentionally getting close to Yangyang that I realized something was off.”
That day, after handling the matter of Zhou Lan Yueyan’s explicit photos, Bi Yuan wanted to invite Xu Yang out to eat, but he saw that Wen Hao and Xu Yang were very close, massaging each other and joking around. Immediately, Bi Yuan felt that something was off—Wen Hao wasn’t usually a talkative person at the studio, so the only reason he would suddenly try to get close to Xu Yang was because of one thing. That night, Bi Yuan sent him a text message.
Bi Yuan: Delete the video I asked you to make earlier, and destroy the source files as well.
Mushroom Head Little Brother: Why? Weren’t you satisfied with that video? Why delete it?
Bi Yuan: There’s no reason. Just delete it, and don’t mention this matter to anyone else. Consider this project canceled.
Mushroom Head Little Brother: Closed-Door, I don’t understand. You were clearly satisfied with it. Why delete it? Besides, I spent so much time editing it. There’s no effort without hardship.
Bi Yuan: I understand. Name your price.
Wen Hao gave him a figure, and at the time, Bi Yuan thought Wen Hao was a straightforward person. That evening, he transferred the money to him, calling it hush money, and thought the matter was settled. But he never expected…
“I underestimated him. He actually went to Xu Yang!”
On the day of the press conference, after watching Xu Yang’s interview, Bi Yuan wanted to bring him a small cake and chat with him, but instead saw Xu Yang rushing to the restroom with a panicked expression, even knocking over the cake in his hand without noticing, looking completely distracted. Recalling that Xu Yang had just interacted with Wen Hao, Bi Yuan immediately suspected that Wen Hao was up to something behind his back again.
Before going to find Xu Yang, Bi Yuan tracked down Wen Hao, dragged him into the hallway, grabbed his collar, and gritted his teeth, saying, “I told you this matter is settled. I gave you hush money to stop bothering Xu Yang. What exactly do you want?”
Wen Hao didn’t seem to mind being grabbed by the collar. He looked up with an innocent smile and said, “Mr. Bi, I didn’t do anything. We’re just colleagues chatting. Why are you so upset?”
“If you didn’t say anything to him, why would he suddenly get so panicked?! Wenhao, I’m warning you, don’t set your sights on him. You’ve been with the studio for so many years and I haven’t used any tactics, but don’t push yourself into a corner!” This was the final warning for Wenhao. Bi Yuan pushed him away, straightened his clothes stained with cake, and turned to leave, but Wenhao called out to him.
“Isn’t that a bit too much, Mr. Bi?!” Wenhao, as if afraid no one would notice they were whispering in the hallway, shouted at Bi Yuan at the top of his lungs: “I’ve been at the studio for so many years and never had the chance to take full responsibility for editing a show, but he comes in and gets to handle the music composition. Can you honestly say you don’t have a personal agenda?!”
The banquet hall was bustling with people, and Wen Hao’s loud outburst would soon attract attention. Once that happened, there would inevitably be a bunch of journalists jumping on the opportunity to sensationalize the situation, and who knew what kind of trouble that might cause. Bi Yuan couldn’t stand those men and women who were always looking for trouble, and Wen Hao had just walked into his trap. Bi Yuan turned around and walked toward Wen Hao, pushing him forcefully against the wall, grabbing the collar of his shirt that he had just let go of, and gritted his teeth as he said:
“Why haven’t you been given any responsibility or authority in all these years? Don’t you have any self-awareness? Li Mu isn’t blind. If you’re not made of gold, don’t blame others for ignoring your talent!” After saying that, Bi Yuan pretended to tidy up Wen Hao’s collar and said, “You’d better put away your little tricks. Those bastards used Yueyue’s matter to target us, and you all saw how it ended. If you know what’s good for you, act as if the video editing incident never happened. Otherwise, don’t blame me for being unkind to you!”
After saying that, he left Wenhao in the hallway and went to find Xu Yang.
He had thought the matter would at least remain calm for a while, but he had underestimated Wenhao’s ability to cause trouble. That night, after spending time with Xu Yang, just before going to sleep, he noticed Xu Yang’s phone light up in the middle of the night. It seemed like someone had sent him a message, so Bi Yuan out of curiosity checked it.
What he saw was shocking—Wen Hao had used the video to cause trouble for Xu Yang. Bi Yuan couldn’t hold back. As soon as it was dawn and Xu Yang was still asleep, Bi Yuan went to the location Wen Hao had mentioned in the message.
“That’s how it all went down,” Bi Yuan said to Li Mu, his mind in turmoil. “You already know what happened afterward.” Looking at the empty tubes of turtle jelly on the table, which he and Li Mu had eaten, Bi Yuan impatiently pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lit one for himself.
“After knowing you for so many years, I really can’t figure you out anymore.” Seeing Bi Yuan lost in thought as he puffed on his cigarette, Li Mu looked disgusted.
“What do you mean?”
“You were the one who used this trick to mess with Xu Yang in the first place, and now you’re the one fighting for Xu Yang’s reputation. What do you really want from Xu Yang?”
It’s no wonder Li Mu couldn’t figure out Bi Yuan. Even Bi Yuan himself hadn’t figured it out until today. He told Li Mu, “It’s… just like that.”
“Like what?” Li Mu wanted to ask for clarification, but he felt it was stupid to ask such a question. After thinking for a long time, he threw out a guess to Bi Yuan, “You’re not serious, are you?”
This sentence was like a pebble tossed into a lake, creating ripples in Bi Yuan’s heart. The waves weren’t big, just circling around in his heart, swaying back and forth, sweeping away the gloom from earlier and suddenly making him feel excited. “Serious” was truly a wonderful word.
“Seriously! That’s why I came to find you!” Earlier, when describing the details of the fight with Wenhao, Bi Yuan’s lips had been curled, and his eyes had been dark and gloomy. But now, he had changed quickly, like the sky clearing up after a typhoon. Bi Yuan smiled, even leaning toward Li Mu’s seat in a slightly mischievous manner.
“I came to see you today because I wanted to ask you some questions…” Seeing that Li Mu’s expression wasn’t good and he was looking at him with a skeptical gaze, Bi Yuan smiled mischievously, opened a can of turtle jelly for him, and handed it over.
“Don’t eat any more turtle jelly! It’s already autumn, and you’re still eating so many cold things. Aren’t you afraid of getting diarrhea?”
“No, I’m eating it as a snack!” After saying that, he pushed the opened jar toward Li Mu again. Seeing that Li Mu reluctantly took it, he leaned in close, placing his hand on Li Mu’s shoulder like a close friend, and asked, “How do people usually go about dating?”
“Are you crazy?!” What kind of question was that? Just a moment ago, their conversation had been serious, and the topic had shifted too quickly for him to keep up. “Why are you asking me about dating? I’m not you.”
“I’m just asking. I’ve never been in a relationship before, and you’ve chased after people before, so asking you is definitely the right choice!”
“I don’t chase men. Figure it out yourself. Don’t come to me with this!”
Seeing that Li Mu was too stingy to share even a little bit of experience, Bi Yuan made a disapproving sound and tried to persistently ask more questions, but Li Mu grabbed his arm and dragged him to the door, pretending to throw him out. “If you’re dating Xu Yang, don’t bother me with it!” As he opened the office door to throw Bi Yuan out, he bumped into Xu Yang, who had just raised his hand to knock on the door.
“Xu Yang, why are you here?”
“Yang Yang, why are you here?”
The two spoke almost in unison.
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