The moment Jin Yi finished speaking, he felt as if he had been stabbed from both front and back.
Fan Qing let out a cold laugh.
“Brother Sheng, has Second Young Master not been at the company for quite some time?”
Tang Sheng spoke lightly as well.
“Yes, it has been quite a few days. He said he was giving himself a holiday for the New Year. That holiday somehow stretched all the way into March.”
Fan Qing: “Since it has been that long, I assume Second Young Master has already used up all of this year’s vacation days?”
That was one strike.
Tang Sheng: “That is what I was thinking too. Since Second Young Master is back, let us start overtime from today.”
That was another.
Jin Yi was attacked from both sides.
…Damn it!
He knew he had said the wrong thing. Was it too late to take it back?
“I was wrong!”
Jin Yi surrendered immediately.
Small, pitiful, and helpless!
He had flown too high outside!
He had almost forgotten the combined power of Brother Sheng and Fan Qing!
Fan Qing: “Heh.”
Tang Sheng: “Heh.”
Two cold snorts later, cold sweat poured down Jin Yi’s back.
He did not even have time to leave any “last words” before being pressed back into his office chair.
Immediately afterward, two stacks of files—like small mountains—were placed on his desk.
Jin Yi tried to struggle one last time.
“Well… I heard Yuan Jing trended recently? The company seems to be doing even better while I was not around…”
So maybe consider letting the child off?
His final resistance earned him two leave request forms.
One from each of them.
Very fair.
Left with no choice, Jin Yi signed them.
Sob, QUQ!
If he had known, he would not have listened to his buddy and come back just to show his face!
Tang Sheng was very satisfied.
Fan Qing was also extremely satisfied.
Perfect timing—while the heat was still there, he could move a few more pieces on the board.
Second Young Master had returned at just the right moment.
Fan Qing and Tang Sheng left decisively.
Jin Yi stared blankly at their retreating figures, then at the documents in front of him.
He almost let out a loud wail.
This child’s life was so bitter!
He had only listened to a friend and come home to show his face and prove he was still alive.
How had it turned into this?
After whining to himself for a while, his eyes suddenly lit up.
Since things were already this miserable, he might as well go sell his misery to his brother!
Action without delay.
Jin Yi immediately called his brother.
…Oh. It did not go through.
He thought back.
Right—had his brother blocked him last time?
If he remembered correctly, it was because he and his friends had been drinking a bit too much while singing karaoke, and he had called his brother for money…
Yes!
That had to be it.
After all, that night his brother had clearly been busy “working hard” with Brother Sheng.
Jin Yi remained very calm.
Being blocked in that situation was perfectly normal.
No problem.
If a call would not go through, then he would just use video.
Grinning, Jin Yi tapped the video call button.
Sure enough, his brother had not blocked him there!
Jin Si’s lazy-looking face soon appeared on the screen.
“What is it? Ran out of money again?”
Jin Yi: ?
“Can I only ever contact you for money?”
Jin Si slowly reflected on himself.
“Oh. Then you must have caused some trouble. If it is something I can handle, speak. If not, just lie flat and accept your fate.”
Meow meow meow?
Was that really how his brother saw him?
Jin Yi was indignant.
“I did not cause trouble! And it is not for—”
Wait.
Since he had already made the video call…
What was wrong with asking for a little more allowance?
The thought made Jin Yi instantly straighten up with confidence.
“Then, brother, could you give me a bit more money? I saw a newly released limited-edition watch recently.”
Jin Si leaned back in his chair, looking somewhat listless.
“I remember you just asked me to increase your allowance at the beginning of the month. How are you out of money again so soon? And has Fan Qing not been managing the company quite well lately? Did you not make any money?”
The recently released limited-edition watch—he knew about it.
One of his clients had planned to give him one, but he had refused.
A three-million-yuan item, and that old man thought he could secure the contract in his hands? Far too optimistic.
Jin Si glanced at Jin Yi’s face again.
So this brat could not even come up with three million by the end of the month?
What kind of party had he thrown this time?
Fan Qing!
Mentioning that name was one thing—but the moment his brother brought it up, Jin Yi instantly perked up.
He was going to file a complaint!
A complaint!
After complaining, he would have even more justification to ask for allowance!
Hehe, that was right!
With that thought, Jin Yi puffed out his chest and launched into a dramatic round of complaints.
After he finished tattling, he added with complete confidence,
“Brother, look at how they treated me. Are you not heartbroken? Do you not want to…”
…compensate your precious little brother?
Before he could finish, he saw that the laziness in his brother’s eyes had vanished. Jin Si’s gaze lit up.
“You said A Sheng took leave? Really?”
Jin Yi: ?
What was so important about Brother Sheng taking leave?
Was not your beloved younger brother being bullied more important?
Jin Yi shouted inwardly, but outwardly he shrank.
“Yes. Brother Sheng and Fan Qing both took leave.”
That was wonderful!
Jin Si’s spirits soared instantly.
If Fan Qing had taken leave too, he must have gone to cling to Nie Luo again.
Which meant A Sheng would definitely have time.
As Jin Si thought this through, color returned to his pale, refined face. He abruptly rose from his chair.
“This information is good. I will have someone deliver that watch to you shortly.”
Since A Sheng was on leave, what was the point of staying at the company?
To negotiate some shabby three-million-yuan deal with certain old men?
?
Information?
What information?
The information that Brother Sheng took leave?
Jin Yi froze.
Why did this development feel… slightly off from what he had imagined?
Still, whatever.
Jin Yi happily ended the video call.
The watch was secured. Tomorrow he would wear it and show it off in front of his buddies!
Hehe!
Happiness, pure happi—
Jin Yi’s smile vanished the moment he looked at the files piled in front of him.
Jin Yi: …Damn it!
He forgot!
He forgot to mention this to his brother!
Now, if he called again to ask his brother to send over an assistant to help process the documents, would his brother even have time to answer?
Was not his brother’s entire heart already racing toward Brother Sheng?
Tsk.
Jin Yi hesitated for two seconds before decisively giving up.
What if he disturbed his brother and Brother Sheng?
Then the watch he had just obtained might sprout legs and fly away.
No, no. Absolutely not.
The duck was already cooked and sitting in his mouth—he could not let it fly off.
Jin Yi sighed for no clear reason.
Come to think of it, Fan Qing had probably gone to look for Old Nie too, right?
Working overtime was bad enough.
Why did he also feel like he had been force-fed dog food for no reason?
Jin Yi was not wrong.
Fan Qing had indeed gone to see Nie Luo.
Nie Luo did not have any new dramas or films recently, but he had taken on a public service advertisement.
The theme of the advertisement was environmental protection. The director in charge had taken the entire crew flying around the country with a single goal in mind—to capture two extreme contrasts.
For example, how breathtaking an untouched, pristine ocean could be.
Or how, on an island where the sea breeze had piled up mountains of trash, not a single green plant could be found—only plastic products that would remain unchanged for centuries, never decomposed by microorganisms.
The idea was beautiful.
But it was undeniably exhausting.
To achieve authenticity, the director truly had taken the whole crew to remote corners across the country.
Places almost devoid of human presence.
Like where they were now—an arid stretch of yellow-earth desert.
Drought. Sandstorms.
The land was utterly desolate. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but yellow sand and dust, without a trace of green.
And in this very place, Nie Luo sat casually on the ground with the rest of the crew.
The clothes he wore were for filming—but they had also become his daily wear over the past few days.
Because the director wanted absolute naturalness and realism, the outfit was actually Nie Luo’s own.
Under the director’s instructions, however, it had not been washed for two days and two nights.
His originally white shoes no longer showed a single trace of white.
The yellow sand and dust that blew through from time to time had long since stained them a muddy, darkened hue.
He wore a simple, casual outfit. A thin jacket hung loosely on his frame, coated in a thick layer of dust. A casual flick of his hand would send up enough powder to choke someone.
But for Nie Luo, it was manageable.
They had been here for two days and had grown accustomed to the weather.
Though the heat was oppressive, everyone still wore jackets and long pants, with masks covering their faces.
Otherwise, any sudden gust of wind would fill their mouths with sand.
After two days, people identified one another by body shape alone—no one looked quite human anymore.
Even someone with top-tier looks like Nie Luo had not escaped—
Actually, he had.
The staff and director stood by the camera, all eyes fixed on the monitor, where Nie Luo was gently stroking the earth.
The Nie Luo on screen looked nothing like the one who had dominated trending topics on Weibo two days ago.
Repeatedly engulfed by yellow dust, even his hair had taken on a faintly sallow tint.
For filming, he had removed his mask. Stubble shadowed his jaw, and his eyes showed the weariness of the past two days’ strain.
Yet when he turned his head, fingers brushing lightly over the ground, and the light in his eyes slowly dimmed, there was a strange, fractured beauty to him.
The crew and the director found themselves holding their breath.
The director, especially, felt a quiet certainty.
He had chosen the right person.
He had once worried that Nie Luo’s striking appearance might steal too much focus.
Would audiences become overly fixated on his looks?
But when Nie Luo truly appeared on the screen, he realized—
More exceptional than his appearance was his acting.
The breathtakingly beautiful face that appeared on camera—one that should have drawn praise and attention—did not overshadow the meaning he was trying to convey.
When those strong, well-defined hands pressed against the earth, the light in his eyes—light that should have been undying and indestructible—flickered and faded, bit by bit, unable to be swallowed even by the yellow haze.
In that instant, the thought that rose in the director’s heart was—an overwhelming ache.
He ached for this land, and he ached for the person in the frame.
But what hurt the most was the hope that had been lost.
“Cut! Very good!”
The director’s shout shattered the heavy silence on set.
Nie Luo shifted his head slightly.
Several staff members even turned their faces away, as if unwilling to meet those eyes now stripped of hope.
The director himself subconsciously looked aside.
Even he did not want to meet that disappointed gaze—
Hm?
Why was there a car approaching in the distance?
The director paused.
The vehicle drew closer and closer, then finally stopped nearby.
What was going on?
He was still staring blankly when someone stepped briskly out of the passenger seat.
Who was that?
“Fan Qing?!”
“Is that Manager Fan?”
…All right. Apparently he was the only old man here who did not recognize him.
But Fan Qing?
Why did that name sound familiar too?
Director Yuan fell into brief contemplation.
He felt as though he had heard that name somewhere before.
Before he could think further, the male lead he had chosen strode forward in large steps.
Then came a voice he had never heard before—bright, delighted, utterly devoid of aloofness.
“A Qing? Why are you here?”
The director did not understand.
But he was deeply shaken.
So Nie Luo could be this enthusiastic?
While he stood bewildered, several staff members’ eyes lit up.
A few exchanged looks and quietly stepped aside to whisper.
“You are one too?”
“You are as well?”
“What a coincidence! I was just saying how miserable these days have been. I did not expect the sugar to fall straight from the sky like this. This is pure happiness, okay? Sob, sob.”
“Right? And this place is so remote—it must have taken over ten hours to get here? To come all this way… I suddenly feel like I can believe they are real.”
“Same here! Real or not, I am shipping this pair no matter what.”
“Me too!”
They were happily buzzing when the director called out loudly,
“Come, come, come! Nie Luo’s good friend came to visit and brought drinks and self-heating hot pots. There is plenty of bottled water too. One for each person—come get yours!”
The two whispering staff members froze.
Damn!
There was such a blessing?
They had been eating dry rations mixed with sand for two whole days!
As expected of Manager Fan—so thoughtful.
That night, everyone drank soda and held the best-tasting version of self-heating hot pots in their hands. It was pure bliss.
The two staff members ate with moved expressions. One could not help but murmur,
“Should we share this with the girls in the group?”
Before she finished speaking, she saw Nie Luo walk toward the car Fan Qing had arrived in.
Then—
He got in.
Got.
In.