57 5.3

On the day that he was scheduled to film the movie's new scenes, Chen Yu followed the original owner's style to dress conservatively in long, slim-cut charcoal jeans, paired with a black collared shirt buttoned up over his Adam's apple. To relieve the boredom, however, he rolled up his sleeve cuffs so that he was completely covered up except for his fragile wrists, the bared skin looked particularly delicate against the stark black outfit.

Satisfied, he made his way to the shooting location as he mentally reviewed his two tasks for today.

Firstly, he had to portray his role well. But that wasn't difficult, since with tens of thousands of years under his belt, Chen Yu was probably the most experienced actor in this world. Moreover, his part as 'Xiao Jiu' was a tiny, minor one.

From what Chen Yu had skimmed, the movie was depicting how a young commoner in imperial China led a rebellion and gained enough power to seize the dragon throne. Xiao Jiu was merely the servant of Wu Xuan, the minister who eventually became the right-hand man of the emperor. He didn't even directly work under the main character who was played by Sun Ri, it could be seen from this how insignificant Chen Yu's role was originally.

It appeared, however, that his performance the day before yesterday had inspired the screenwriter. The script had been changed to include 'affectionate' undertones in the master-servant relationship, setting up indications of Wu Xuan's unspeakable feelings for his sovereign. Although this was a blatant bid to capitalize on Sun Ri's publicly acknowledged homosexuality, Chen Yu didn't intend to meddle, he simply memorized his lines and anticipated meeting Guo Ziyue who, according to his research, would be visiting his guardian this morning.

This upcoming encounter was necessary to complete his second self-appointed task, which was to confirm that the protagonist wasn't his lover. If his guess was correct, he could start to move along his plans to push Sun Ri and Guo Ziyue together. Of course, in the unlikely event that his assumption was wrong and Guo Ziyue was in fact his man, heh, then he would take very good care of this self-absorbed brat.

As it happened, the moment he stepped into the studio where the set of Wu Xuan's house was already constructed, he spotted the tall figure of Sun Ri smiling at another man with a gentle gaze. From that tender smile, Chen Yu surmised that it must be the protagonist. Since Xiang Kai wasn't a rude person, he nodded toward the pair and turned to leave without interrupting their conversation, but he was in the presence of the protagonist who despised him. Naturally Guo Ziyue wouldn't let things go smoothly.

Having stretched his hand out and dragged Chen Yu back by the shoulder, he beamed, "Senior Xiang, didn't you notice that your junior was here?"

Despite the sneer in his heart, Chen Yu's face remained indifferent, he glanced at the taller man then ducked his head to mutter a quiet "En."

A flash of hatred glinted in Guo Ziyue's eyes. This man had always treated him like this, he'd never even faced him properly. Hng, the last life he'd been foolish, this time he'd make sure to become the king of the entertainment circle and accept every partner who begged to be taken.

Having renewed his determination, he peeked sideways at Sun Ri through his eyelashes, this man would be very appropriate to be his next stepping stone. Although he still didn't enjoy bottoming, he'd gotten fairly accustomed to it, the only obstacle was enticing Sun Ri into taking the final step. At the thought, he remembered that his priority right now wasn't to deal with Xiang Kai, so he squeezed his grip and suppressed his anger. "All right, we know you're shy, we won't keep you. Good luck with your shoot, Senior!"

Chen Yu mumbled another "En" and walked away, secretly curling the corners of his lips. Every aspect of Guo Ziyue was really too weak to be the person he was pursuing, there was no need for mercy then. Pushing aside his faint anxiety about how he could locate his lover, he focused on what had just happened.

From what he'd observed, the reincarnated protagonist must have been preparing to seduce Sun Ri in the plot but missed his opportunity, probably because CEO Peng had demanded that they become exclusive. While considering whether it would be better if they did the deed or not, he didn't forget to rub his fingers affectionately over the place where the protagonist had held him as he escaped.

With Xiang Kai having been sent away, Guo Ziyue looked at Sun Ri with an awkward expression, saying, "Senior Xiang is a bit weird, it would be best if you don't interact with him too much." When several seconds passed without a response, he hesitantly nudged the other man's arm. "Senior Sun?"

But Sun Ri's attention had been caught by something else. That Xiang Kai...may not be what he'd expected.

Whereas he'd initially been annoyed at the close way Ziyue was holding on to another man, the sight of Xiang Kai's pale wrists peeking out of the restrictive black sleeves had distracted him, stimulating his desire to bind that delicate body up into the most magnificent piece. Even his irritation at Xiang Kai's monosyllabic answers had been obscured by the craving.

Furthermore, once he detected how flushed Xiang Kai's cute ears and nape of his neck had become at a simple question from Guo Ziyue, a peculiar idea was sparked, and the lingering way Xiang Kai had held his hand on his shoulder as he left, like he was savoring Guo Ziyue's touch, only deepened his suspicions.

At his hunch, an uncomfortable feeling lodged in his stomach, so that when he finally woke up from his thoughts, his reply to Ziyue was rather blunt. "If I should stay away, so should you, why bother with him?"

Guo Ziyue startled. He'd believed that Sun Ri had almost been won over, but it seemed that he would need to make more of an effort. Therefore, showing an abashed grin, he quickly agreed, "I will, in the future I won't make trouble by talking to him."

The assurance somewhat appeased Sun Ri, he patted Ziyue's hair and mildly offered, "I was too harsh just now...don't worry, I won't be trapped by someone like that."

Guo Ziyue also softened and smiled brightly. "En, Senior Sun, I trust you. Anyway, what I meant was that since Xiang—that is, Senior Xiang—isn't very clean, it's safest to keep a distance, that's all."

For some reason, the words called up the memory of how Xiang Kai had acted around Guo Ziyue, making Sun Ri frown imperceptibly. A bit bothered, he decided that it would be better to concentrate on work for now. "Ziyue, didn't you tell me that you were working until late last night? You must be tired, why don't you go get some rest? There's no need to wait for me."

Although Guo Ziyue was reluctant, both because he wished to spit on Xiang Kai's face some more and because he felt that he should brush up his favorability rating with Sun Ri, sensing that Sun Ri wasn't in the mood, he obediently said goodbye.

Thus, when Chen Yu came out of the dressing area after changing into a plain blue servant's gown, he found to his surprise that the protagonist had left already. Clicking his tongue in disappointment that he hadn't been able to play with the brat some more, he shrugged inside and sat down to study his lines without dwelling on it. But in Sun Ri's eyes, that indifferent man had become so depressed due to Guo Ziyue's absence that he had to fiddle with his script to disguise it, thereby confirming his speculations.

Watching this, his mood turned complicated. Obviously he didn't like that Xiang Kai was in love with Ziyue, whom he had regarded as his future partner. This unhappiness, however, was mixed with the delight of discovering the charming gap between Xiang Kai's wooden face and shy heart, he wanted to see more. In any case, Guo Ziyue must have been mistaken about Xiang Kai's reputation, it didn't seem likely that such a thin-skinned man could sell himself for fame.

Chen Yu, who appeared to be diligently reading, was actually perfectly aware of the heated gaze on him. A bit puzzled, he pressed his lips together. What was wrong with this Sun Ri, why was he staring at him? He'd expected him to get jealous and chase down Guo Ziyue, not to waste time giving him such an intense glare. Wasn't this reaction going overboard?

But he didn't have much time to think about the man's bizarre behavior, the director soon called for everyone to get into their places.

The episode they would film next was a flashback of how Wu Xuan and his servant had first become intimate, so it predictably took place in the master's suite. As soon as the cameras turned on, Xiang Kai's image of an aloof young man disappeared and was replaced with a clumsy, earnest teenager stumbling into the inner bedroom with a basin of water in his hands. But too engrossed in keeping the bowl stable, the boy tripped over a small stool, spilling the water all over himself and waking the master who had been sleeping.

At the noisy splash, Wu Xuan lazily squinted his eyes open and chuckled drowsily. "Xiao Jiu, what are you doing?"

The teenager fidgeted as if embarrassed, stammering, "Y-young master, I-I, please forgive m-this servant—"

Rolling over, Wu Xuan lay on his side with his head resting on his arm, peering at the servant's glistening wet skin. The view was quite good. "Xiao Jiu," he drawled, "come, since you've used all the water I was going to wash up with, you'll have to take responsibility." Saying so, he trailed a hand down to toy with the belt of his loosened robes, making his intentions clear. As the master of an affluent household, there was no reason to curb his inclinations, particularly since his wife had long given birth to a son.

In reality, the actor who played Wu Xuan was completely straight, he'd never even considered having sex with another man. But watching that exquisite little face display a bewildered expression that morphed into unwillingness tinged with curiosity, he genuinely became excited. How had he not realized how attractive Xiang Kai was? Examining those lovely features, his voice unconsciously deepened. "You don't want to?"

Xiao Jiu shifted nervously from one foot to the other, wavering until his master threatened, "So you'd prefer to meet with the steward?" The boy couldn't risk that his superior would hear about his mistake, he forced himself to approach the bed.

The instant he was within range, Wu Xuan pulled the slow-moving servant over and pushed him down, shoving aside the coarse blue uniform to reveal a slim white body. After briefly rubbing his mouth against Xiao Jiu's, he flipped around so that he was reclining against a mound of pillows then pushed the boy's head down to his hips. With his thumb parting open the glistening lips, he eagerly whispered, "Good, get to work then."

With that ad-lib line, the director announced that the scene was a wrap, startling the drooling onlookers. Damn it, they cursed silently, that was too spicy, they had to see what happened after that! But the movie couldn't include restricted content, so they had no choice but to give up.

When the actor who'd been enticed into going further than the script required returned to his senses, he jumped out of the bed and rushed to the restroom, making deliberate gagging noises to cover his mortification at his erection. He couldn't believe he'd gotten aroused, no matter how beautiful Xiang Kai was, that had been another man on top of him!

Meanwhile, Xiang Kai merely wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and fixed up his disheveled clothes, blankly staring into the distance to suppress a yawn. Sun Ri, however, noticed that the black eyes were faintly reddened and 'understood' that the young man was distressed, he probably wasn't accustomed to such explicit actions.

In fact, Sun Ri was also restless. He had to admit that he had a hidden weakness for beauty, and that scene had directly stimulated his passion. Xiang Kai was perfectly suited to his tastes, his pristine, black-and-white coloring lent him an air of nobility like an ink painting, so that when he was defiled, the contrast was especially delicious...

Xiang Kai's uneasy, chagrined look as Xiao Jiu had touched the edge of this allure, but it was a pity that his partner had been useless, he hadn't been able to bring out Xiang Kai's true potential. If he'd been the one on top of him, he could have drawn out the very best of that fascinating figure.

Gazing at the young man, his mind filled with fantasies of how Xiang Kai would look if he was absolutely humiliated by degradation, absolutely overwhelmed by pleasure, absolutely dependent on him for everything...

Sun Ri crossed his legs to conceal his thirst.