You're a Dog If You Don't

The fourth young master hadn't fallen out with his powerful father, and his wealthy best buddy had taken him to a private kitchen restaurant for a lavish feast.

A large round table was covered in all kinds of delicious food. From a distance, Chen Mu glanced at the two people huddled together eating at the other end.

This was a distance he liked very much, one that was very friendly to his social anxiety. He didn't feel neglected at all.

The man who had come to pick them up kept piling food into Lin Fengmian's bowl.

Meanwhile, Lin Fengmian's chopsticks hadn't reached beyond his bowl once. Head down, he kept shoveling in food.

"Eat slower. What kind of production team is this? They're terrible. They don't even provide late-night snacks. A decent production team should feed its employees at least five meals a day."

"Here, Mianmian, open up. This is good."

Chen Mu watched Lin Fengmian open his mouth and accept the piece of chicken the man had already bitten into.

"..." That settled it. They really were a couple.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lin Fengmian saw Chen Mu staring at them with his mouth wide open and thought he wanted some chicken. He turned the lazy Susan, bringing the plate of Ginger Massage in front of him. "This is good. Try some."

Xia Qinghe stared at Chen Mu with his brows drawn low over his eyes. Only after his foot was stepped on did he rein it in.

After the meal, at Lin Fengmian's request, Xia Qinghe drove Chen Mu back to the company dormitory.

As a trainee, Chen Mu received room and board and a guaranteed monthly allowance of fifteen hundred yuan. He could choose not to live at the company, but there was no housing allowance. He wasn't a Shengjing local and had come from out of town, so he had moved straight into the company's trainee dormitory.

Although the company's contract was harsh, the accommodations were fairly decent. They had rented several apartments in a residential complex, and Chen Mu lived in a small room in one of them.

Because he didn't like fighting or competing for things, all the good rooms had been chosen by the others. By the time his turn came, only a nine-square-meter storage room remained.

Still, in Shengjing, where every inch of land was worth a fortune, Chen Mu was already very satisfied to have a place to stay, especially a room of his own.

He quietly turned the door handle, only to discover that the living room, usually filthy and cluttered with trash and clothes, now looked the way a living room should. The company boss, star agent Yi Qiang, and the producer and director of Empire Singer were all sitting there.

Meanwhile, the doors to the rooms of his roommates, several fellow trainees from the same intake, were all slightly ajar, with slivers of light showing through.

Chen Mu suspected those guys were all hiding behind their doors, eavesdropping.

Chen Mu stood quietly in the doorway, met the eyes of the four big shots on the sofa, then quickly lowered his head. Not knowing what to do with his hands or feet, he gripped his guitar strap and stared at his toes.

President Jin of Kemi Entertainment exchanged a puzzled look with Yi Qiang. This guy was a wealthy young heir's... friend?!

A T-shirt that cost fifty yuan for two? He was dressed in polyester from head to toe. Nothing about him suggested he knew a wealthy young heir.

Even the guitar on his back was worth a thousand yuan at most.

Yi Qiang looked at Director Ma and Producer Yu, wondering whether the two had encountered something unclean tonight and been blinded by it, leading to this farce of calling a deer a horse.

Producer Yu smiled warmly. "Chen Mu, Director Ma and I are here to invite you back tomorrow to rerecord."

Chen Mu: "..." Something's not right.

Based on his years of experience reading novels, there was only one reason these people, who always held themselves high above everyone else, would stoop to look at an ant: they had discovered that the ant was even more powerful than they were.

Afraid of losing their room to survive, they were willing to humble themselves.

He knew his own circumstances best. He was just a kid from an ordinary family, and his parents had no hidden, powerful background. There was only one possibility: his friend might be more powerful than these people.

Powerful enough to frighten them.

He quietly uploaded the photo he had taken of the luxury car to Doubao and asked how much it was worth.

Doubao soon told him that even the lowest on-the-road price was over seven million yuan, while modified or custom editions could cost over ten million.

Exactly how many million over ten depended on what had been modified.

Chen Mu sucked in a breath. He could now count himself among those who had ridden in a luxury car.

"My friend isn't free tomorrow."

"What about the day after? Is he free then?" Director Ma also wore a kindly smile, as though he hadn't been the one opposing them today.

"I don't know. He didn't say." Chen Mu was telling the truth. Although Lin Fengmian hadn't told him, during dinner, the man who drove the luxury car had kept urging Lin Fengmian to stay at his place, and Lin Fengmian had said he was busy for the time being.

All four looked disappointed, but there was plenty of time ahead. As long as Chen Mu was still with their company, they would surely be able to get in touch.

Director Ma said, "That's all right. Come over tomorrow, and I'll record your part separately. As for your friend, I have plenty of footage. We'll put it together and edit it, and I guarantee you'll both look perfect in the broadcast."

Seeing that they couldn't dig up any more information, they left with warm farewells, leaving a large pile of health supplements for Chen Mu before they went.

Uneasily, Chen Mu carried everything back to his room and sent Lin Fengmian a message.

[Bro Mian, I think the director found out who your friend is. The director, producer, our company boss, and our star agent all came to the dorm to gawk at me. sobbing.jpg]

This was far too much of a test for his socially anxious heart.

Lin Fengmian had just arrived at Xia Qinghe's place on the 108th Floor.

[They didn't give you a hard time, did they?]

[No, they were all very polite to me. I smell a conspiracy.]

[It's fine. If they treat you well and give you opportunities, just take them. Don't feel burdened. It's what they owe you.]

Chen Mu understood. He had encountered genuine wealth.

[baby peeking around the door.jpg, how much did your friend's car cost?]

[Sixteen million eight hundred thousand.]

[baby is frightened.jpg]

Lin Fengmian saved the reaction image. He had been the one to give Xia Qinghe that car. Back when he had sued that Agency, they had paid him over seven million yuan in compensation. He had added some money of his own and given it to Xia Qinghe as a birthday present.

It wasn't Xia Qinghe's most expensive car, but it was his favorite, and he had driven it for several years.

It was already old, yet he still hadn't replaced it.

"Mianmian, come take a bath. I've filled the tub. You've been working hard all day. Let's have a good soak together and ease the fatigue."

Lin Fengmian looked up and saw Xia Qinghe walk shamelessly out of the bathroom, stark naked.

He came straight over and tugged at Lin Fengmian's T-shirt.

Xia Qinghe sniffed. "What is that smell on you? You stink."

Lin Fengmian pulled up his T-shirt and sniffed. "Urgh-" He had gone sour.

Xia Qinghe pulled off his T-shirt and tossed it straight into the trash. "We're not keeping this. It reeks of other dogs."

Lin Fengmian: "..." What did he mean, the smell of other dogs?

Xia Qinghe sniffed all over him like a dog, stripped Lin Fengmian completely naked, and threw every stitch of clothing, from head to toe, into the trash. The only thing he hadn't tossed in was Lin Fengmian himself.

"I won't throw you out. Give you a wash, and you'll still be worth keeping." Xia Qinghe hoisted Lin Fengmian over his shoulder and carried him into the bathroom, making as if to throw him into the tub.

Lin Fengmian folded his arms and gave him a challenging look. Go on, throw me. You're a dog if you don't.

Xia Qinghe met his eyes. After a long while, "...Woof."