Stomachache

If there had been a hole in the ground, Tong Zhao would have gladly crawled into it.

How long had Shu Sizhuo been standing in the doorway? How long? How long?!

Staring straight at him with that mischievous look on his face—how was that any different from pulling his pants down in public?!

Wait, President Shu, didn't you just go to a meeting with those two executives? When did you come to my studio?

"Tong Zhao, look at the camera. What are you spacing out for?"

"Tong Zhao?"

"Tong Zhao!"

Tong Zhao turned toward the camera.

"Ready?" the director asked him.

Tong Zhao nodded.

"All right, here we go."

Tong Zhao closed his eyes briefly and decided to ignore the door god and give the shoot his full attention.

But his muscles kept tensing up, his smile was unnatural, and he flubbed his lines.

"It feels black and silky—pfft..."

"Silky hair—pfft..."

"It feels smooth and silky."

Once he had his lines straight, he still couldn't loosen up his movements.

"Not enough, not enough! You don't look enraptured enough, and you didn't get any of the points I just mentioned right!" The director rushed over and demonstrated them himself. "Like this, this, and this... Got it?"

Tong Zhao glanced at the doorway. "Got it."

The director patted him on the shoulder. "I know you can do it!"

Shu Sizhuo leaned against the doorway like a sculpture, his gaze fixed firmly on Tong Zhao. He watched Tong Zhao gesture awkwardly, repeatedly casting sidelong glances his way, both embarrassed and ill at ease. The sight was so vivid that it made his heart tremble.

Tong Zhao finally got through two movements, and the young makeup artist hurried over to touch up his makeup.

Leaning against the doorway, Shu Sizhuo heard someone call to him from the corridor. "President Shu, we've been looking everywhere for you. So here you are!"

The two company executives came over with cheerful smiles, followed by a gorgeous woman with long, wavy hair and a smoking-hot figure.

Tong Zhao, who was ostensibly having his makeup touched up but was actually sneaking glances at Shu Sizhuo, widened his eyes slightly.

Hua Xiaotang?

The group chatted at the door for a few moments. Hua Xiaotang laughed radiantly, leaning toward Shu Sizhuo again and again as if she had no bones.

After a few more words, they left together.

He's gone?

Tong Zhao craned his neck after Shu Sizhuo until even the hem of his clothes was out of sight.

"Could you sit still, please?" the young makeup artist asked softly.

"Sorry." Tong Zhao smiled, straightened up, and obediently closed his eyes.

But he couldn't get Shu Sizhuo and Hua Xiaotang's brief interaction out of his head.

Great, great.

Who said Shu Sizhuo couldn't turn straight again? I'd say he turned straight in a second! Head Office, you were worrying for nothing. Maybe he was never completely bent in the first place. Look at him: once he saw a beautiful woman, he didn't even glance back at the studio. Hua Xiaotang is so beautiful, she might have stolen his soul already.

Tong Zhao gripped the edge of the stool tightly, but comforted himself inwardly. Shu Sizhuo was still straight, and that was great! Head Office berated him all day for turning the man bent and then running off, but now he, Tong Zhao, had finally been cleared of the injustice and was no longer a sinner for the ages!

Good, good, good. This is just wonderful!

"Excuse me," the young makeup artist said softly, "could you relax your jaw? Please don't clench it so tightly."

Tong Zhao: "..."

Without Shu Sizhuo watching, the rest of Tong Zhao's shots went especially smoothly. The director was delighted, and after filming wrapped, he pulled Tong Zhao aside and added him on his personal WeChat, saying they should work together again if they had the chance.

As Tong Zhao walked toward the company entrance, he messaged Shi Ruohe: [I've wrapped up. How's it going on your end?]

Shi Ruohe didn't reply; he probably hadn't finished filming yet.

Night had fallen, and the ground was wet from a light rain. There was a chill in the air. City A's neon lights spread across the horizon, a scene of utmost splendor.

Tong Zhao walked to the bus stop and was trying to decide whether to take the bus or the subway when someone suddenly grabbed his arm.

He turned in surprise and saw Shu Sizhuo emerge from beside the bus stop sign. Shu Sizhuo took the cigarette from his mouth and stubbed it out on a nearby trash can.

"President Shu?!"

Shu Sizhuo led him aside by the arm. A low-key black Cullinan was parked by the curb, and Shu Sizhuo opened the front passenger door. "Get in. I'll give you a ride."

Tong Zhao sat in the car and looked at Shu Sizhuo, full of questions. "Why are you here? Did you come here just to wait for me? It's actually pretty easy for me to get home. I only need to make one transfer, whether I take the bus or the subway. You don't need to drive me."

Shu Sizhuo started the engine. "It's fine. It's on my way."

The Cullinan pulled out slowly. There was a faint smell of cigarette smoke in the car, along with the lingering scent of women's perfume.

Tong Zhao slowly frowned.

If her perfume got on him, just how close were they?

Tong Zhao held it in for half the ride, but he really couldn't hold it in any longer. He wanted to know how Shu Sizhuo felt about women and whether he had turned straight again, so he cleared his throat twice and asked, "Why does it smell like women's perfume?"

Shu Sizhuo glanced at him. "You know what women's perfume smells like?"

Tong Zhao looked back at him. "Yeah, it's a bit like Muse's Garden."

Shu Sizhuo sneered. "You even know Muse's Garden."

Tong Zhao blurted out, "I gave it to someone before."

The lights outside flickered across Shu Sizhuo's face, which had turned cold and stern. "Oh? Who did you give it to?"

To be able to carry out the assignment in this world, Tong Zhao had bought Muse's Garden to bribe the supervisor, but he certainly couldn't tell Shu Sizhuo that. He could only give an evasive smile. "A friend."

The veins on the back of the hand gripping the steering wheel bulged, and his long, deep-set eyes shifted inscrutably.

Shu Sizhuo was desperately holding down the monster inside him.

A monster called jealousy.

Tong Zhao looked out the window and pressed his lips together. Then he slowly turned back and asked with a gentle smile, "Is that your girlfriend's perfume?"

"Girlfriend?" The Cullinan passed through an intersection, and Shu Sizhuo's lips curled into a mocking smile. "Tong Zhao, do you have a girlfriend?"

Tong Zhao was taken aback.

"Or are you dating anyone?"

Tong Zhao hadn't expected his question to be thrown back at him. He answered, "No. The company doesn't allow us to date."

"So you would if they allowed it?" Shu Sizhuo said. "Then is there anyone you want to date?"

Tong Zhao glanced at him surreptitiously, then looked forward again. "No."

It was the answer Shu Sizhuo had expected. He raised an eyebrow and said nothing more.

Tong Zhao had been hit back with two questions, and now he couldn't bring himself to ask what he had wanted to.

The Splendid Residential Complex was an old development built over twenty years ago. Back then, it had been considered a residential complex for City A's wealthy, but the rich people living there had since moved to the new district one after another, and its surroundings and facilities had gradually grown old and dilapidated.

Shu Sizhuo parked in a roadside space and surveyed the surroundings without expression.

Tong Zhao unbuckled his seat belt. When he looked at Shu Sizhuo, he felt a little reluctant to part. "I'm going now. Drive carefully later, and thank you, President Shu."

Shu Sizhuo bent forward slightly, pressing his left hand to his stomach. He leaned against the steering wheel and looked at Tong Zhao, his brows tightly furrowed. "My stomach suddenly hurts a little. Can I come to your place for a glass of water?"

Looking at Shu Sizhuo's somewhat pale face, Tong Zhao said in alarm, "Why did your stomach suddenly start hurting? There's a pharmacy over there. I'll go buy you some medicine."

Shu Sizhuo grabbed him. "No need. I have medicine in the car. I'll just come to your place for a glass of water."