Rainy Night

The only actors attending the dinner were Xie Yibai and Su Xiaotang. The other guests included directors, screenwriters and producers. At the main table were the CEO of a film and television company, a production company representative, a sponsor's representative and several investors-commonly known as sugar daddies.

Although Xie Yibai and Su Xiaotang had long since been paid for their work, they were the ones who benefited most from the show's success. How could they not put on smiles for the celebration? The handsome man and beautiful woman stood and made the rounds with their drinks, both thinking that brighter smiles and sweeter words would help attract sponsors for their next show.

After several rounds of drinks, Su Xiaotang was the first to say she had taken leave from her production to come and had to get back to work. Any later, and she would miss her flight. She wore a little pink dress that night and looked exquisite down to her delicate, beautiful fingernails. No one had the heart to make things difficult for the little princess in her finery, so whether her excuse was true or not, they let her go.

Xie Yibai and Su Xiaotang weren't particularly close. At most, they had developed a rapport while filming together back then, and he had a good impression of her. They were in the same position tonight, both playing the decorative role of flattering others and offering toasts. Suddenly deprived of his companion, he couldn't sit still either and pretended to go to the restroom. After washing his hands, Xie Yibai went behind the CEO of Dusk Star Entertainment-his boss, Hao Jun-and bent down to say, "Brother, I have something urgent to take care of too. Please let me go."

Hao Jun was born in the eighties, mild-mannered on the surface but shrewd underneath. He usually treated Xie Yibai quite well, but he wasn't about to indulge him now. "What's your hurry? Do you think we really called you here just to celebrate?"

"Huh?" Xie Yibai didn't understand. His dark, bright eyes seemed to ask, What else could it be for?

Hao Jun couldn't whisper to him in front of everyone, not when the guest beside him was still drinking. He only said, "Go back to your seat for now. You'll find out soon enough."

Xie Yibai couldn't argue, since he had made up the urgent business. He simply wanted to leave, and since his boss wouldn't allow it, he could only return to his seat and wait dejectedly.

I'm still not famous enough. If I could soar straight to the top and become a top star, I wouldn't have to put up with this kind of humiliation.

Lost in his own world, Xie Yibai ignored the noise around him, turned his anger into an appetite and began shoveling down food.

He had a good appetite and enjoyed everything he ate. After watching him for a while, a female investor raised her glass of red wine to him and asked with a smile whether he wanted a bowl of rice.

Xie Yibai declined. He could be a foodie, but he couldn't be a glutton; he still had to go easy on the carbs. The rich lady looked kind and was nice, so Xie Yibai shared a separate drink with her.

Then he got a little drunk. His head grew heavy, and something throbbed painfully deep in his temple. So when Zou Yan arrived, he didn't immediately register who it was.

Only when Zou Yan, amid the compliments of the guests rising to greet him, reached the seat beside him-the one Su Xiaotang had occupied earlier-did Xie Yibai belatedly say hello. "What are you doing here?"

Zou Yan smiled at him as if he had planned it all along and took his seat. A server came over to clear away the used dishes, chopsticks and wineglass and replace them with a fresh set.

His thinking sluggish, Xie Yibai stared at Zou Yan and asked, "You make movies. What are you doing here?"

As a producer, Zou Yan's job was project management rather than creative work. Movies were only one part of his business; he could oversee all kinds of audiovisual productions. Of course, before tonight, he had indeed never expressed any intention of entering the web drama market.

Xie Yibai hadn't spoken quietly. Afraid he would offend someone, his boss Hao Jun smoothed things over. "Film and television are all part of the same family. Teacher Zou has honored us by joining the table, so let's all have a drink!"

Everyone in this circle was called "teacher," greatly diminishing the weight of the title. Zou Yan was still relatively inexperienced; even with all the praise in the world, he was only a promising young talent. The deference shown to him was mainly out of regard for his father.

Zou Yan knew that perfectly well and never put on airs like Sheng Ke. He wanted to raise his glass in response, but it was completely empty. If Xie Yibai had been sober, he would have had the tact to know when to flatter someone, but he was half drunk and half awake and didn't think of it.

Unable to count on him, Hao Jun simply pretended not to know him. To show his sincerity, he personally brought over the wine decanter and filled Zou Yan's glass, then ingratiatingly drained his own first.

Zou Yan had come to expand his network. Saying, "Sorry I'm late," he humbly offered to punish himself with three drinks and drank with everyone in turn. His generous, easygoing manner earned him a chorus of praise and laughter.

Under the influence of alcohol, Xie Yibai's IQ and EQ were both rapidly going offline. Watching Zou Yan toss back glass after glass made his stomach churn. Afraid he would throw up if he stayed another second, he hurriedly covered his mouth and ran to the restroom.

Outside, everyone was enthusiastically drinking a second round, while he was inside throwing up until he was drained.

With no assistant by his side, Xie Yibai could only force his weak limbs to carry him to wash his face and rinse his mouth. The washbasin had everything he needed. He tore open a packet of mouthwash and held it in his mouth, the sharp sting bringing him back to his senses. One look in the mirror showed his makeup was completely ruined. His wet blond hair clung to his forehead and temples, and droplets beaded on his cool, pale skin. He looked like a doll that had fallen into water and needed to be dried and tidied up.

Xie Yibai couldn't stay much longer. He took out his phone, called his assistant and told him to hurry over and pick him up.

An artist was a management company's most valuable asset, as well as a hard-won money tree. Seeing that Xie Yibai had been inside for a long time, Hao Jun figured he was probably feeling unwell and called a server over to knock on the door and check on him.

When Xie Yibai opened the door, he felt much better again. Declining any help, he looked weak and unwell as he openly said goodbye to everyone at the table.

If he wanted to leave, no one could force him to stay. Zou Yan very much wanted to go after him, but he had business to attend to, so he could only clear his mind of distractions and sit back down. He had strong professional ethics and wouldn't break the rules for a moment's urgency.

The gilded elevator walls reflected the tip of Xie Yibai's nose and his eye sockets. He leaned against the wall for a while, and when he heard a ding, he ruffled his flattened blond hair and walked at a measured pace toward the lobby.

His assistant still hadn't come no matter how long he waited, and he wanted a breath of fresh air, so he came down alone.

It was raining outside. He smelled the rising, damp scent of earth as he came beneath the portico with both hands in his pockets. Soaked in the rain, the carpet had become a long, thick, dark-red tongue stretching into the dark, rainy night.

The carpet under Xie Yibai's feet was still fairly soft, tinted orange-red by the light spilling through the revolving door and dotted with dirty footprints. Xie Yibai stood there like a moving target. He wasn't afraid of paparazzi or entertainment reporters lying in wait; his private life was so uneventful that there was really nothing worth prying into or exposing.

After another five minutes, Xie Yibai still hadn't seen his assistant. He called him, sniffled and asked, "Where on earth did you go? I'm waiting for you in the wind at the entrance. I'm going to catch a cold."

"Sorry, sorry! I went to the wrong floor. I'll come straight down. The driver should be there by now, so get in the car first."

He was about to ask where the car was parked, but the other end hung up a second too soon.

It was also possible the signal in the elevator was bad, Xie Yibai thought. He wasn't the kind of person who bossed employees around just because he was their employer. He was scatterbrained by nature, didn't like making a fuss and was thick-skinned.

Rain this heavy swallowed up the lights of the night. He looked around for the car and suddenly noticed a black sedan already parked at the bottom of the steps, ten meters to his left, hidden in the darkness by the curtain of rain. He had arrived in a black Bentley too. It didn't occur to him to go back into the lobby to borrow an umbrella; he kept thinking he only had to run a few steps to reach the car. Likewise, he didn't look closely at the license plate or the headlights, certain that a car waiting quietly on a rainy night had to be there to pick him up.

So Xie Yibai jogged down the steps on the wet red carpet, pulled open the unlocked car door and got into the back seat.

The lights inside the car were off. Sheng Ke had the window open a crack and was resting with his eyes closed amid the splashing raindrops. Tonight, there was only his heartbeat surrounded by the sound of rain. Even when he heard footsteps splashing through the water toward him, he didn't open his eyes. But then the sound of a car door opening and closing intruded on his world-

"I drank too much tonight. I just want to get home. I'm the boss, so why do I always have to wait for him?" the person who had gotten into the car muttered, sounding a little tired.

Sheng Ke said nothing. He turned on the front cabin light and saw the newcomer's face in the rearview mirror.

His hair was dyed, but he was easy to recognize.

Well, if it isn't a small world for enemies.

Sheng Ke put his hands on the steering wheel, tapping his index finger rhythmically.

He got into the wrong car, just like that? Could he have done it on purpose?

Xie Yibai was completely oblivious to anything being wrong. His dizzy head rested against the window as he rambled on, "My alcohol tolerance isn't usually this bad. I don't know what happened today. Maybe there was something wrong with the food here. I ate a lot and threw it all up."

Still receiving no answer, he realized something was odd and finally looked toward the driver's seat.

The man hadn't turned around, so he couldn't see his face. There was only an arm resting on the steering wheel, divided by light and shadow like a sculpture, with sharply defined folds in the clothing and graceful lines of muscle and bone. And on the wrist was an expensive Patek Philippe, its dial depicting the heavens, the Milky Way, a starry sky and the phases of the moon.

Xie Yibai was certain his driver couldn't afford a watch in that price range. His driver didn't wear a watch at all!

The instant he met the eyes in the rearview mirror, his bewilderment turned to alarm.

"Uh... I, um..." Xie Yibai faltered, his face flushing bright red.

Sheng Ke had no intention of trying to figure out how he felt. As if nothing were amiss, he took out a lighter, lowered his head with a cigarette between his lips and lit a small flame. The window was open, letting smoke flow into the chilly night and rain drift into the stuffy car.

"Just think of it as sheltering from the rain. You can get out when your ride arrives."

Chapter 8: Rainy Night

This was awkward. Xie Yibai felt as though he had been wrapped in a straitjacket, a suffocating sensation crawling all over him, and he immediately sobered up considerably. He was easily embarrassed, but fortunately, numerous unexpected situations had helped him develop something of a thick skin. He muttered, "I thought this was the car picking me up. I'd better get out and wait..."

But when he pulled the car door, he found it was locked.

"Sorry, I pressed the wrong button," the man in front said, though he made no move to unlock it. "Wait in the car. The rain's too heavy."

Because Xie Yibai wasn't completely sober, his guard was considerably lowered. Besides, he had always had a good memory, learning his lines quickly and remembering names well. Sheng Ke's voice and appearance were both distinctive, and even without seeing his face, Xie Yibai had a vague sense that this was someone he knew.

Soon, the other man asked, "Is Zou Yan still upstairs?"

With that question, there could be no mistake: this was the young big-shot director himself, the one who had shut him out last time. Xie Yibai answered, "Yes. Director Ke, why aren't you going up?"