You want me to call you... big brother Yun Chuan?

Fang Yi stood directly opposite Yu Xiuyuan and raised an eyebrow, giving him a disdainful look: Serves you right. Keep going, if you dare~

Yu Xiuyuan gritted his teeth. So he had called him that. What of it?

He and Yun Chuan were only working together, and the arrangement was that Yun Chuan would neither reject nor accept his advances!

If he wouldn't accept him, what was wrong with calling someone else big brother?

He took a deep breath, turned, lifted his head, and looked straight into Yun Chuan's eyes. "What? Is that not allowed?"

Still unsatisfied, he leaned a little closer, tipped up his chin, and challenged him. "Or do you want me to call you... big brother Yun Chuan?"

That "big brother Yun Chuan" hit Yun Chuan hard enough to stun him for a moment. Yu Xiuyuan was so close that his eyelashes nearly brushed Yun Chuan's chin, and Yun Chuan instinctively took half a step back.

Yu Xiuyuan caught that retreat, gave a smug little huff, and pulled Su Ziming away with him.

The live chat had already gone wild:

[What's going on?! Who's with who here? It's all mixed up, mixed up, mixed up~]

[God Yun, kiss him! He's challenging you! Kiss him senseless!]

[Yu Dog just won't go away. He keeps finding new ways to get our big brother Jinming's attention.]

[I'm suddenly kind of shipping Fang Yi and Yu Beauty... such a bickering couple.]

[Fang and Su are delicious too~ The domineering CEO and his darling little wife.]

[Yu Beauty belongs to God Yun!]

[Love this! Give me more! Keep it going! Mix all the ships together!]

[Mixed ships are supreme! One giant ship stew! Stir it again! Switch it up! Stew it to death!]

[Nothing matters more than all of you living happily together!]

Fang Yi and Yun Chuan exchanged a look, said nothing, and followed.

In the distance, Lu Jinming stood shrouded in shadow. No one called to him, and no one looked at him. In the end, he turned and left without a word.

When they returned to the Front Courtyard, the space beneath the begonia tree was empty, and the bucket of fish had vanished too. Lin Xi and Li Rou had presumably carried it to the Kitchen.

They hurried to the Kitchen and found Lin Sen there as well.

Seeing them return, Lin Sen greeted them warmly. "You're back?" Without waiting for an answer, he went on, "I remember Xiuyuan being quite a good cook. Everyone polished off every last bite of the dishes you made in the first episode. I wonder if I'll have the honor of trying your cooking this time?"

Yu Xiuyuan had already planned to cook. He hummed in acknowledgment and replied casually, "I was going to make a few dishes anyway."

"Really? That's wonderful." Lin Sen took two steps forward, already rolling up his sleeves. "Let me help. Just tell me what you need."

"No need." Yu Xiuyuan refused him cleanly, though his smile remained unchanged. "Su Ziming and I can handle this meal. He's planning to make scrambled eggs with tomatoes."

Lin Sen's smile faltered slightly, and his voice sounded forlorn. "All right. I won't get in your way, then." He lowered his head and went to the Dining Room.

In the live chat, Lin Sen's fans began complaining:

[What's wrong with Yu Xiuyuan? Our Sen offered to help, and he doesn't even appreciate it.]

[They're ganging up to bully the new guest.]

[So rude. Watch out, or our Sen will get you blacklisted.]

Lin Sen stopped in an empty corner.

He could no longer conceal the malice in his eyes. Yu Xiuyuan, Su Ziming, you threw my kindness back in my face. Since you don't know what's good for you, don't blame me for showing no mercy.

In the Kitchen, Yu Xiuyuan glanced over the counter. The vegetables had been washed and the meat cut. Lin Xi and Li Rou were pretty efficient, it seemed; they simply couldn't handle the actual cooking.

He smiled at the two women. "All right, leave the rest to us. Go hang out in the living room. We'll be as quick as we can."

"Great. Good luck, then." Li Rou waved without standing on ceremony. "I'm already hungry."

Yu Xiuyuan and Su Ziming took over the Kitchen, with Yun Chuan and Fang Yi helping them. They worked together fairly smoothly.

The food was soon on the table, and everyone sat down around it.

Lin Sen spoke first, his smile warm and polished. "You've already filmed two episodes together, so you all know each other. Jinming and I have only just arrived, so please look after us."

Lu Jinming forced a smile too. "That's right. We hope you'll help us settle in."

Li Rou and Lin Xi responded enthusiastically. Yu Xiuyuan nodded along, his smile perfectly measured-not too much, not too little, just enough.

Su Ziming, however, kept his head lowered and said nothing.

Fang Yi glanced sideways at him, then at Lin Sen. A faint, ambiguous smile curved his lips, but he said nothing.

Yun Chuan hadn't listened at all.

He picked up a green bean, turned his wrist, and placed it neatly in Yu Xiuyuan's bowl.

Yu Xiuyuan looked down at the green bean in his bowl and frowned.

He didn't like green beans.

The atmosphere around the table suddenly shifted.

Li Rou, Lin Xi, and Fang Yi stared at that green bean and began exchanging looks, sparks flying between them.

Su Ziming wasn't silent anymore either. He lifted his head and watched Yu Xiuyuan with shining eyes, clearly enjoying the drama.

Li Rou nudged Yu Xiuyuan with her elbow, thinking she was being subtle, and waggled her eyebrows. God Yun's even serving you food now. Nice work, buddy! When did you two get together?

Yu Xiuyuan was speechless at their exaggerated expressions.

Don't these people go online? Yun Chuan ate my leftovers last time. Now he's just putting something in my bowl. Is this really necessary?

He didn't understand. How could shipping them online possibly compare to seeing it live?

In the end, Yu Xiuyuan never ate that green bean, and Yun Chuan did nothing else out of line.

Lu Jinming, however, spent the entire meal looking as though he had swallowed a fly and barely said a word.

After the meal, Lu Jinming and Lin Sen washed the dishes. Those who hadn't cooked did the washing up-a fair division of labor.

Yu Xiuyuan grabbed Su Ziming and headed outside.

"We're going for a walk on Back Hill to help digest." He let the cameraman know. "Just follow behind us. We're only taking a stroll."

Yun Chuan looked at his hand gripping Su Ziming's sleeve, said nothing, and returned to his room.

Once they were far enough away, Yu Xiuyuan checked that there were no fixed cameras nearby and switched off both their microphones.

"What's going on between you and Lin Sen?" he asked bluntly.

Su Ziming looked surprised. "Why do you ask?"

Yu Xiuyuan rolled his eyes. "I'm not blind. Every time you see him, you're like a mouse facing a cat. Hurry up. Xiao Liu will call if we take too long."

Su Ziming fell silent for a while, seemingly weighing his words.

"Lin Sen's manager was the one who released that secretly recorded video back then. But I have no proof. Believe me or not, it's up to you."

"I believe you," Yu Xiuyuan said without hesitation. "Just tell me. Why did he hurt you?"

Su Ziming shook his head. "I don't know. He used to be... a really good friend of mine."

His voice grew quieter, as though he were talking about something from the distant past. "He was always good to me and looked after me. When I couldn't afford to eat, he was the one who helped me out."

He paused. "I just don't know why he suddenly changed. He slandered me and set me up. Songs I wanted, jobs I worked hard to find, even low-paying commercial gigs-he had to take them all from me. He wouldn't normally spare those things a glance, but as soon as I wanted something, he'd snatch it away."

Yu Xiuyuan looked doubtful. "Could he have feelings for you?"

Su Ziming smiled bitterly. "No. I can tell. He genuinely hates me."

Yu Xiuyuan looked thoughtful. "Did he suddenly start hating you after you became a little famous?"

Su Ziming whipped his head around to look at him. "How did you know?"

"He's jealous of you, you silly kid." Yu Xiuyuan stretched lazily.

Su Ziming didn't believe it. "He has everything. How could he possibly be jealous of me?"

Yu Xiuyuan didn't argue. Instead, he changed the subject. "How's the recording of 'The Lonely Brave' going? When are you releasing it?"

"It's already recorded. We're doing post-production, and we're planning to release it the day after tomorrow." Su Ziming didn't know why he was asking, but answered honestly.

"Right. Release it as soon as you can. Make sure the audio doesn't leak, and keep a close eye on the copyright."

Su Ziming's steps faltered, and his expression shifted slightly. "You suspect he's after 'The Lonely Brave'?"