Still Smells Pretty Good, Right? Could I Really Smell That Bad?

Looks like this guy hadn't noticed that his precious Qingqing was missing? Or did he know Shen Qing would be fine?

[Little 7, what was the original plot for this part? How did Gu Yanting save Shen Qing?]

As one of the two male leads, he absolutely could not let something like this happen. Gu Yanting was bound to get a chance to play the hero and save the beauty, so that Cheng Xin, this cannon fodder character, could make her exit.

And Song Mingzhou, the vicious villain responsible for all this, would be despised and cursed by countless readers. He had nearly ruined Shen Qing's innocence, allowing the feelings between the two male leads to deepen again and again through crisis.

No surprises there.

527 pulled up the original plot for this segment. It was the second key turning point in the development of the protagonists' relationship.

[It goes like this: Gu Yanting will soon realize Shen Qing hasn't returned, then ask the waiters. One of them saw you take Shen Qing away. He'll cleverly track him down and rescue Shen Qing.]

[That's it? That simple?]

[Of course. The protagonist is naturally smarter than ordinary people. If you don't hurry, Shen Qing will be stripped naked.]

[...]

[Hehe.] 527 snickered with a touch of schadenfreude. [Then you'll get cursed out again, Host. After all, it was you—cough, cough, the original owner—who sent Shen Qing to someone else's room. That's such a huge deal. It practically proves your character is rotten.]

Song Mingzhou was speechless. [...Am I not your beloved Host anymore?]

527 immediately changed its tune. [Yes, yes, of course you are.]

Who could blame it? Its beloved Host had been handed the script of a villain committing evil deeds.

Song Mingzhou also knew Cheng Xin was plotting against him. That camera—if Cheng Xin failed, the video of him taking Shen Qing away would immediately spread across the entire internet.

That was why he had been cautious from the start. He hadn't let Shen Qing misunderstand him and had told him that he would go find Gu Yanting.

Of course... he had to keep his word.

And leave behind some video evidence.

Only then did Gu Yanting realize that Shen Qing seemed not to have shown up. He looked around, then suddenly turned and came face-to-face with an enlarged face.

It was Song Mingzhou.

"Song..."

"Come with me." Song Mingzhou grabbed him and pulled him toward the back without explanation.

Gu Yanting hadn't forgotten the slap he had just received. The mark on his face had yet to fade, and just as he was about to flare up, Song Mingzhou quietly told him, "Shen Qing fainted."

"What??"

Gu Yanting immediately panicked and no longer had the mind to settle scores with Song Mingzhou.

Song Mingzhou said, "There are too many people here, and I don't know what happened to him either. I helped him into a room to rest, then came down to find you. Room 6720."

The moment he finished speaking, Gu Yanting ran off like the wind.

The director looked baffled. "Huh? What happened? Is something wrong?"

Song Mingzhou explained for him, "Shen Qing got drunk, so I helped him into a room to rest. It should be a room booked by one of our people. It wouldn't be convenient for me to take care of him, so I asked Teacher Gu to check on him."

"Oh, as long as he's fine. Everyone's eaten enough anyway. Why don't we call it a day?"

[ Ding. Host Song Mingzhou's key plot point has been successfully repaired. Current mission progress: 20/100. ]

Just like last time, ten minor mission nodes seemed to form one major node. They would always alter the course of the main plot somewhat, causing the later missions to deviate again.

Neither Song Mingzhou nor 527 knew exactly how they had deviated.

It did not matter.

Everyone began leaving, and Song Mingzhou departed with them. He called his assistant over and had him drive to the location Duan Xun had sent him.

He had been calling Duan Xun frequently lately and needed Chen Fei to cover for him. No matter how slow Chen Fei was, he had noticed something was off.

The car finally stopped outside an upscale residential complex.

"Chen Fei, go back first. I'll head to the set by myself tomorrow. Go wait for me there."

Chen Fei looked like he wanted to say something but held it back.

Song Mingzhou was about to open the car door and get out when he noticed his expression. He found it strange. "You're a grown man. Why are you being so hesitant? Say whatever you want to say."

Well...

Chen Fei finally could not hold it in any longer. He looked at Song Mingzhou with grave seriousness. "Teacher Song, are you... pursuing someone new again? What kind of person are they? Who is it?"

He had not heard Song Mingzhou's calls directly, but he occasionally caught fragments of conversation. It sounded like the person was from the industry.

Last time, he had even heard a name... it seemed to be...

Duan Xun???

He could hardly believe it.

Song Mingzhou had not expected Chen Fei to ask that. His smile faded somewhat as he asked, "Why would you ask that?"

Chen Fei said bluntly, "I'm afraid you'll repeat the same mistakes and..."

And become everyone's laughingstock by being a pathetic simp again.

After all, who was Duan Xun? Even Gu Yanting could not reach that level. His own artist could not even get close to Gu Yanting—could he possibly get close to Duan Xun?

Wasn't he just going to be toyed with like a dog again?

Naturally, he did not say that aloud.

But Song Mingzhou understood what he meant from his complicated expression. He was not angry; instead, he almost wanted to laugh.

Once he finished laughing, his smile vanished completely. He said sternly, "Chen Fei, you cannot tell anyone about this—not anyone at the company either. Do you understand?"

His icy gaze frightened Chen Fei.

"Yes, understood."

"Good. Go back first, and don't overthink it."

"Yes."

Song Mingzhou opened the car door and got out. His figure vanished into the night. Chen Fei watched him disappear into the darkness with a furrowed brow before finally driving away.

Song Mingzhou found the building and pressed the elevator button.

The night was utterly quiet, without a sound. He could hear only his own heartbeat, especially clearly within the elevator.

Ding.

He had arrived.

Song Mingzhou took a deep breath and opened the door.

It was an apartment. A tall, slender man stood in the living room, his long, straight legs crossed as he leaned lazily against the sofa, gazing blankly at the night view beyond the window.

"Brother."

The man turned around. Unfathomable emotions stirred in his eyes. The two had not met in days, though they had made plenty of phone and video calls.

It seemed...

Something was quietly changing.

Duan Xun stood up, a smile curling at his lips. "You're back."

"Yeah, I'm back."

"Come here."

Song Mingzhou changed his shoes and ran toward him. The two embraced fully, and Duan Xun casually stroked his hair before leaning in to sniff lightly.

"You drank?"

He frowned in displeasure.

Song Mingzhou jumped, sniffed himself, then secretly glanced at Duan Xun's expression.

Does it smell strong?

This alcohol... still smells pretty good, right? Could I really smell that bad?

Why does he look like that? Is he disgusted by me?

No, I need to hurry up and wash it off. What if he's disgusted and won't touch me anymore? No, no, that won't do. I'm going right now.

"Brother!"

Song Mingzhou hurriedly pulled back from him a little, his face deadly serious. "I had a dinner gathering tonight. I told you about it last time. Something happened, and I'll tell you later. I'm going to take a shower first."

Duan Xun said, "Hm?"

Song Mingzhou asked, "Is that okay?"

Duan Xun said, "Okay."

"Great."

Song Mingzhou darted into the bathroom in a flash. Duan Xun did not even have time to say much more before watching him nearly slam into the bathroom door with a thud. He let out a soft laugh and walked over as well.