Do you trust me?

Xu Shi had heard it perfectly clearly at the time: the investor had specifically designated the actor for the second male lead.

Xie Yanci had personally chosen Wen Yu.

The news had spread like wildfire through the company, and quite a few people had even messaged him specifically to ask what exactly the relationship between Wen Yu and Xie Yanci was.

Xu Shi did not know either.

He did not know why Xie Yanci had chosen Wen Yu without any warning, when he was the one who was nominally his wife.

The emergency stairwell was dim and silent. The cigarette between his fingers burned with a flickering point of scarlet.

Xie Yanci lowered his eyes, his cool voice unhurried. "I didn't choose him."

His voice, devoid of any discernible emotion, sounded somewhat hollow in the quiet space.

Loose strands of hair fell over the Alpha's forehead. His dark eyes were slightly lowered, and there was no telling what he was thinking.

Xu Shi parted his lips, unsure what to say, and only asked, "Then who chose him? Is there someone among the investors whose word carries more weight than yours?"

There is.

Xie Yanci badly wanted to say it.

But he was afraid Xu Shi would say his excuse was too half-hearted.

Only after stubbing out the half-smoked cigarette between his fingers did Xie Yanci slowly speak. "I don't know, but I never chose him."

Then he raised his eyes to Xu Shi. "Do you trust me?"

"..."

It was the first time Xu Shi had seen a pleading look in Xie Yanci's eyes.

Xu Shi did not know what to say. He slowly looked away without answering.

Outside the window, fierce winds howled. An alert for a torrential rainstorm rarely seen in three years popped up on his phone. The empty emergency stairwell was so quiet they could hear each other's heartbeats.

"Ding-"

Xu Shi lit another cigarette.

His beautiful features blurred behind the smoke rising and spreading from his fingertips. "What I want is the role of Xia Cen. Whether you choose me has nothing to do with me."

Xu Shi spoke abruptly.

"Since the second male lead hasn't been fixed now, there's still room to fight for it. That's enough."

"As for whether you chose Wen Yu, or whether I trust you, none of that matters."

Didn't matter?

None of that mattered?

Xie Yanci's brows drew tightly together. Losing some control of his emotions, he gripped Xu Shi's shoulders. "I..."

"President Xie!" Xu Shi reminded him. "We're getting divorced in three months. There's no need to consider each other's sincerity in a business marriage."

"..."

"..."

Xie Yanci nodded.

He really should not have asked whether Xu Shi trusted him. He had overstepped a little.

It had been a loveless business marriage to begin with. He had always been rational; the only thing he ought to care about was not breaking his word.

Whether Xu Shi misunderstood was not something he needed to consider.

It did not matter.

Inside the spacious single-floor apartment downtown.

Xu Shi had just woken up and climbed off the sofa, surrounded by luxury goods and jewelry he had carelessly strewn about.

He had been in a bad mood last night, so he had taken Xie Yanci's black card and swiped it at every luxury store.

Casually tossing a Patek Philippe watch onto the floor, Xu Shi rubbed his head, which felt ready to explode, and groggily opened his eyes.

He had drunk so much. He felt awful.

Finding his phone among a pile of suits, Xu Shi sent Secretary Zhou a message: [How is Xie Yanci's illness?]

His head hurt.

Just how much had he drunk?

He was clearly the one who had told Xie Yanci last night that he did not care, and he was also the one who had walked away so nonchalantly...

His phone vibrated. Secretary Zhou replied immediately: [He's recovered. President Xie is at the office today.]

"Why did he go to work as soon as he got better..."

Xu Shi grumbled quietly and typed a long message into the chat box. After thinking it over, he deleted it all.

It was none of his business.

He got up and went to the kitchen to make a glass of honey water. Chewing on dry bread, he opened Weibo.

Today's trending searches were particularly lively.

#Xie Corporation denies investing in Director Song's new film "Explosive"

#Xie Yanci Wen Yu "Explosive"

#President Xie's first foray into the entertainment industry, suspected of backing Wen Yu "Explosive"

The last two topics had been gaining traction since yesterday, their popularity remaining high. Xie Yanci had practically taken over the trending searches.

After all, it was the first romantic rumor about that aloof, restrained, distinguished President Xie.

Xu Shi snorted. Automatically ignoring the romantic rumors, he clicked straight into the trending clarification.

"Hasn't Xie Corporation's Public Relations Department always been really capable? So how did the earlier news get out?"

"Probably a certain 'top star' staging the whole thing himself."

"Would Wen Yu's team really dare spread rumors about President Xie without permission? The fact that he hasn't been blacklisted yet means the rumors are true."

"Whatever, I'll ship whichever couple shows up on my feed!"

Xu Shi: "..."

He should not have clicked in.

There was not a single piece of accurate news about the film's casting, just netizens shipping couples.

He tipped his head back and took a sip of honey water, then called Xiao Chi directly. "Have you heard anything from Director Song's side? I heard filming is about to start."

It was rather noisy on Xiao Chi's end. "President Xie suddenly pulled his investment last night. They're recasting the second male lead!"

"?"

Xu Shi frowned.

Pulled his investment?

Xie Yanci had not mentioned it to him last night.

Even he did not know about this. Where on earth had the gossipers heard it?

"Didn't Xie Corporation's official account say they never invested?" Xu Shi asked.

"They did, but now they've pulled out. They have to pay over a billion in penalties for breach of contract!"

"..."

Hearing Xiao Chi's utterly certain tone, Xu Shi was momentarily dazed.

So it was true that Xie Corporation, as the investor, had chosen Wen Yu instead of him.

But Xie Yanci had said he was not the one who chose him.

Then who was it?

In all of Hong Kong City, whose word carried more weight than Xie Yanci's?

"Xu Shi," Xiao Chi suddenly called to him. "Who can figure out what rich people like that are thinking? Powerful, influential Alphas in the industry all have a crowd of Omegas around them."

"Let alone President Xie."

"There's no need to get too invested. Use him if you can. If you can't, get out early. Don't waste too much emotion."

Xiao Chi could more or less hear the disappointment in Xu Shi's voice, and offered heartfelt comfort.

He naively thought Xu Shi and Xie Yanci were merely a kept lover and his patron.

"...Mm," Xu Shi answered slowly.

There were only three months until the divorce. Neither of them would have to endure much longer.

After a long silence, Xu Shi took a deep breath and adjusted his mindset. "What about the second male lead? Aren't they recasting?"

On this subject, Xiao Chi lowered his voice. "Wen Yu's team had already paid for the trending searches, and now they're saying it doesn't count, just like that. His manager is cursing people out."

Wen Yu had not yet signed a contract with Song Zhixing. There was still a chance.

But Xu Shi had received no notice at all so far.

"I understand." Xu Shi sighed. "Let's wait a little longer. That's all we can do."

He wanted this role simply to see whether he could beat Wen Yu, whether he could rewrite his fate as short-lived cannon fodder.

Now there was no need to prove it anymore.

The moment he learned Xie Yanci had chosen Wen Yu, he understood that perhaps this was all his fate could ever be.

[Who exactly is the original author?]