In the private club where people play the zither and drink tea, the precious "Jiuhe Incense" is burned in the niches in the corners. The long smoke curls up and lingers, as if the years are peaceful.
The soft carpet muffles sound and leaves short footprints when stepped on. The footprints that Lu Zhen had just left were slowly disappearing, and he moved closer to the corner, as if this would give him some peace of mind.
There is a second person in this corner.
A tall, not-so-young man was leaning against the wall watching short videos. If the video was interesting, he would occasionally smile, but the corners of his lips would not rise much and he would stop laughing quickly.
"Time is limited. What have you thought about it, Xiao Lu?" the man asked without raising his head.
"Mr. Sha, I can't do it." Lu Zhen answered respectfully, but also with a little arrogance.
The thumb that had been moving upwards stopped, and the man looked at Lu Zhen distractedly. The corners of his lips raised a little, and he coaxed: "Your agent has negotiated a good resource for you. It's nothing more than sleeping with that woman. Tomorrow you will be the advertising spokesperson."
Lu Zhen shook his head: "Mr. Sha, you should know that I am gay."
"Yeah, I know." The man nodded, looking easy to talk to. "Then why did you come to participate in this game today?"
"I thought..."
"Lu Zhen, you've been in the industry for a few years, right?" The man's eyes stayed on a picture of Hakimi on his phone. "You don't think you can get an endorsement just by chatting with him and pouring him wine, do you?"
In the elegant and luxurious clubhouse, there were exquisite calligraphy works everywhere on the walls. In one corner, there were paintings of the Four Gentlemen: Plum, Orchid, Bamboo and Chrysanthemum. Lu Zhen turned his face away, feeling even more embarrassed.
"I can handle being... touched or something."
The man was amused by Hakimi, who was lying on his back, and he double-clicked his thumb and clicked the red heart. Then he turned off the screen and looked at Lu Zhen seriously.
Throwing a cigarette into his mouth, he said, "You didn't do these things before, and I never forced you. Our company is not a brothel. How to develop it depends on your own wishes."
The man smoked the cigarette fiercely, sucking his cheeks, the dark fire quickly receded, and the ash grew wildly. After spitting out the cigarette, he said, "Now you have taken the initiative to tell your agent that you can take on the 'high-end' role. Now that the resources have been negotiated and the channels have been opened, you will let others touch the endorsement fee of millions?"
"Boss Sha, it's my fault. I accept any form of punishment from the company."
The man was silent for a while, then asked, "Really?"
Lu Zhen shook his head.
"Okay then."
The man took the last puff of cigarette, pinching the butt between his thumb and index finger. He walked to the niche, slowly exhaling smoke while pressing the butt into the lotus incense burner.
Suddenly, the man stretched out his arm, grabbed Lu Zhen's hair, and slammed his head against the wall in front of the young man's shocked gaze!
The sudden force collided with the curling cigarette smoke, and a lifetime of peace was shattered.
"You thought you had the financial sponsor named Fan protecting you? Lu Zhen, you are now an abandoned stray cat." The man's fingers twisted the soft hair and pulled it back, revealing the beautiful face of the young man. "I never force women into prostitution. You agreed to this business yourself. You have to have sex with this person today, whether you want to or not!"
Lu Zhen, who was knocked unconscious, regained consciousness instantly when he heard Fan Xiao's name. His limp back became stiff with anger, his teeth chattered, and his eyes were as sharp as fire.
He has come to this point now, largely because of Fan Xiao. Lu Zhen feels that he is not materialistic, and wants to be with Fan Xiao, and the main reason is love. But when he was holding the best expectations and waiting to start a new journey, Fan Xiao shattered his sweetest dream with the most mocking and contemptuous words.
It turns out that I am just an apple, a flower, a dying cicada... a clown who stirs up trouble for that man.
After that, Lu Zhen spent many, many dawns curled up in a chair on the terrace, where he could see the sky getting darker, which was You Shulang's favorite scene.
During the days he was with You Shulang, he woke up from dreams many early mornings and couldn't find anyone in the bed. Behind the misty curtains, he could see a hazy figure on the terrace, surrounded by a cloud of smoke. It was You Shulang's back.
Lu Zhen used to be very confused. He always felt that there was a wall between him and You Shulang, which he could not climb over, and sometimes he was unwilling to take the trouble to climb over it.
And now, the faint light in the sky has become Lu Zhen's favorite sight.
A new day has begun, and the unhappy past will always pass. However, the old words of his former lover support Lu Zhen at this moment.
Lu Zhen did not allow himself to regret, no matter if it was because of greed for money, resources, or new feelings, he broke up with You Shulang because of greed. He was the one who was immoral and betrayed his feelings. There was no reason to find a far-fetched reason to excuse himself. Fan Xiao was a pervert and he was a scumbag, no doubt about it.
Lu Zhen never thought of going back to find You Shulang, because he was not worthy and because he had no face. He missed You Shulang, but he thought he was not qualified to take that man for himself again.
As a young man, Lu Zhen stopped talking about romance and focused on his career. He did not have good resources and was not very utilitarian. He relied on luck to make a living. Now he rushed around without any rules, not only did he get nothing, but he was also tripped up and tricked by others, and he was in a mess.
So at a certain angry and confused moment, Lu Zhen chose to take the "high-end" route.
At this moment, Lu Zhen, who had gone back on his word, was pressed against the wall by the tall man with his head pressed against it, half of his face was distorted and his expression was fierce and angry.
The name "Fan Xiao" ignited his anger, and the forced status of a sponsor made him speak without thinking: "Sha Huaian, you can fuck me if you want me to, I will fuck you!"
A vein popped up on his neck, and Lu Zhen suddenly broke free from the man's control, using all his strength to fight back. He leaped up and hit the man's nose heavily with his forehead!
"Ugh!" The strong man had never expected that a young man like Hakimi would also show his claws. He was knocked back a step, feeling a sore nose and a warm current flowing out slowly.
The man wiped the blood from his nose, made a "tsk" sound, raised his eyelids, and said slowly: "Lu Zhen, I can't bear it if you don't fuck me today."
In the luxurious suite, the warm air was blowing brightly, and Sha Huaian was sitting on the sofa with his upper body naked.
The man looked tall when he was wearing clothes, but I didn't expect that he had such bulging muscles when he took off his clothes.
There was a dark tattoo on his left arm, and the green-faced and fanged "Acala" seemed to be about to break through the skin and dominate the world. Lu Zhen couldn't understand why a Bodhisattva, who symbolized rationality and wisdom, had such a ferocious and angry face?
Sha Huaian returned several calls before he put his phone aside and waved to Lu Zhen who was standing at the door: "Come here, fuck me."
Lu Zhen shuddered, and all his courage just now disappeared, leaving only fear.
"Mr. Sha, I was wrong." He couldn't open the door, so he could only choose to admit his mistake.
"It's not my fault. Let's talk about it after I'm done." Sha Huaian stood up and unbuckled his belt. His pants fell to the ground, revealing his strong and muscular thighs.
He pressed towards the door step by step, staring at Hakimi who had nowhere to retreat: "Do you need any service from me, Xiao Lu?"
"Mr. Sha, I want to terminate the contract and I am willing to pay the termination fee." Lu Zhen said panickedly.
"I don't need your millions." Sha Huaian's breath sprayed on Lu Zhen's skin, and he bumped into her, "I just need one of these."
"Boss Sha!" Lu Zhen closed his eyes tightly, "I really know I was wrong! Please let me go!"
Sha Huaian lowered his eyes to look at Lu Zhen's fluttering eyelashes for a while, then reached out and grabbed his hair again, revealing the young man's fragile neck: "If you know you are wrong, go and apologize to that female boss tomorrow. When she forgives you and is willing to renew your contract with the company, then this matter will be over."
"Do you understand?" the man shouted.
Lu Zhen nodded hurriedly: "I understand."
"If you understand, get out of here!"
Lu Zhen stumbled out of the car and went upstairs in a daze. It was not until he couldn't find the key in his pocket and couldn't open the door that he realized he was standing in front of You Shulang's house.
Looking at the familiar door and thinking about the gentleness and thoughtfulness of the person inside the door, Lu Zhen's tears instantly burst out. He was like a child who had been wronged outside and finally returned home. He urgently needed great comfort.
He knocked on the door, hard and urgent, and the empty echo shook the peaceful midnight.
Only when my palms were slapped and turned red and painful did I hear the sound of the door being unlocked.
The door was pushed open and the gap became wider.
"Uncle You!" Lu Zhen rushed into the house regardless of everything and blurted out, "I miss you so much!"
But the moment he saw the person inside the door, he was stunned!
The inertia of not being able to brake suddenly caused him to crash into the disheveled man.
Jumping away instantly, Lu Zhen exclaimed: "Fan Xiao, why are you here!"