Love Contract chapter 11
The Gathering
Before the evening shoot, Jiang Liusui had little appetite and only ate a little, but now he was genuinely a bit hungry.
His cheeks puffed slightly as he took small bites of a muffin, and even his way of eating was pleasing to the eye.
Su Wan, amused by him, asked with a smile, “Is it really that good?”
Jiang Liusui nodded, realizing that half of the muffin was already in his stomach, he stopped eating with some embarrassment: “Thank you, Miss Su. I’ve eaten too much, so I’ll stop now.”
“It’s fine, you can eat. The rest aren’t eating much anyway.”
The female artists present, though tempted, dared not eat much to maintain their figures, and most of the male artists weren’t interested in sweets. Su Wan rested her chin on her hand and looked at him: “You might not know, but I recommended you to Yujing that night at the club. I didn’t expect him to actually hire you for the MV.”
As Su Wan spoke, she glanced at Jiang Liusui’s side. He Yujing remained composed, as if he hadn’t heard his name.
“You know me, Miss Su?”
“No need to be so formal, just call me Su Jie. I’ve watched the dramas you acted in.”
Jiang Liusui looked surprised, and Su Wan continued, “By the way, I’ll visit the set tomorrow. My sister is a big fan of yours, so I’ll get her an autograph.”
He was about to say something, when He Yujing gave his waist a timely pinch.
His waist was a sensitive area. Jiang Liusui almost shuddered, suddenly recalling seeing Su Wan delivering a late-night snack to He Yujing previously, and realized the true intention was to see He Yujing rather than just visiting the set.
He Yujing beside him casually said, “The filming is almost done. It’s not convenient with people coming and going on set. You can visit him next time.”
Once again being subtly rejected, Su Wan felt a pang of sadness.
But in front of others, she still maintained a smile: “Alright, we’ll talk about it next time.”
Jiang Liusui pretended not to notice the undercurrent, smiling as he agreed. Chi Lianxi, seeing the awkwardness between the three of them, actively changed the subject: “I’ve been meaning to ask, did you teach He Yujing some secret technique? How did you finish filming so early today?”
He gave He Yujing’s shoulder a casual pat: “I thought with our Lao Gong’s acting skills, we wouldn’t see him until after midnight.”
“Don’t disgust me.”
He Yujing shivered at being called “ Lao Gong” and lit a cigarette, pushing Chi Lianxi’s hand away: “If it weren’t for my lack of interest in acting, you would have been crushed by me since your debut.”
Chi Lianxi looked at him like he was talking nonsense. He Yujing motioned towards Jiang Liusui, “Don’t believe me? Ask him.”
Jiang Liusui was still thinking about what had just happened and didn’t notice he was being called. He Yujing, with his long legs spread on the ground, lazily tapped him with his knee:
“Jiang Liusui, what do you think?”
Jiang Liusui snapped back to reality, stammering.
“Ah… Ah, Yu Ge’s acting is pretty good.” He said while grabbing a glass of lemonade from the table.
“Come on, little brother, are you too embarrassed to expose him?” Chi Lianxi wondered, “But your director is Huang Zhicheng. With Huang’s temper, he wouldn’t go easy… Do you know what he kept telling me last time when we were shooting A Thousand Lights?”
He Yujing and Jiang Liusui almost said in unison, “One more time, it’ll be even better.”
“Yes, that’s the line! You two are quite in sync.” Chi Lianxi said with a bitter smile, “Director Huang kept encouraging me while making me shoot scenes over twenty times. I was almost driven crazy.”
Chi Lianxi described it vividly, and everyone around laughed. He Yujing suddenly said: “Tonight there was an intimate scene…”
Upon hearing “intimate scene,” several people laughed and glanced at Jiang Liusui. He Yujing paused for a moment: “We got it in one take.”
“Impressive.” Chi Lianxi said respectfully, “Is this still the He Yujing I know? I must toast you.”
He Yujing smiled contentedly and was about to clink glasses with him when Chi Lianxi turned to face Jiang Liusui, and his glass took a detour: “Thanks for your hard work, getting through with such a big drag.”
He Yujing laughed in frustration, just as Jiang Liusui reached for an empty glass on the table to pour some wine, He Yujing gently tapped his hand.
Jiang Liusui didn’t understand his intention, “What’s wrong?”
As he spoke, He Yujing simply pushed the glass he was reaching for further away. Chi Lianxi, thinking this guy was upset, tried to mediate with a joke, “Hey, hey? Don’t get mad, look how gentle the little brother is with you.”
“He doesn’t drink.” He Yujing said, then quietly told Jiang Liusui, “It’s okay, you can drink water.”
Jiang Liusui then remembered he had indeed told He Yujing earlier that he wasn’t good with alcohol.
Someone asked: “Are you allergic to alcohol?”
He wasn’t allergic, just had a poor tolerance for alcohol, and after one drink, he would lose direction and answer whatever people asked.
Just as Jiang Liusui was about to reply, He Yujing spoke first: “He’s not drinking today.”
The people present were sharp and, even though He Yujing’s answer was as good as not answering, no one pursued the issue further. Chi Lianxi took the initiative to clink his lemon water glass with Jiang Liusui’s glass and laughed: “I’ll drink water later too, for good health.”
Immediately, someone started to tease: “No way, Chi Ge, you said you were going to get Yu Ge drunk.”
“Yeah, you can’t be drinking water while he drinks alcohol.”
Chi Lianxi played with the dice cup in his hand: “With Yu Ge’s drinking capacity, does he even need to be forced? Give it some time, he’ll get drunk on his own.”
He Yujing laughed and cursed, not denying it. Jiang Liusui asked curiously, “Are you also not good at holding your liquor?”
“It’s okay, but I don’t handle alcohol well. I tend to get drunk and act crazy.”
Jiang Liusui nodded, slightly surprised.
Although, from his appearance, He Yujing didn’t seem like the type to act out after drinking.
Recalling his friend’s consistently terrible drinking habits over the past ten years, Chi Lianxi teased, “I mean, if you get a girlfriend in the future, how are you going to protect her from getting drunk?”
He Yujing didn’t respond, but after Chi Lianxi’s persistent teasing, he finally became impatient: “Why should I do that? It’d be more likely that she will be the one helping me avoid drinking.”
“…Wow,” Chi Lianxi sincerely exclaimed. “You really do have the temperament of a spoiled young master.”
He Yujing’s attitude, so completely laid-back, drew a wave of laughter from those around him. “If Yujing had a girlfriend, she’d probably be driven mad by him. Considering how often he ignores people when he’s working, I bet he wouldn’t treat a girlfriend any better.”
“Where would he even get a girlfriend? All these years, have you seen him take an interest in anyone?”
“No matter how sweet the love songs he sings are, they’re all a lie. With his ‘my way or the highway’ attitude, getting him to be gentle and patient would be harder than climbing to the heavens.”
“I know, I know! If someone asked him why he can’t be as considerate as other boyfriends, he’d definitely say, ‘Then just find someone else!’”
“Hahahahahaha, that’s exactly his style! He Yujing, be honest, isn’t that just like you?”
As everyone took turns teasing him, the person in question neither confirmed nor denied anything. Jiang Liusui, seeing his indifferent demeanor, also joked, “You really do seem like a bit of a jerk.”
He Yujing glanced at him sideways. “Who are you calling a jerk?”
Though his tone was questioning, it was noticeably softer than when he spoke with Chi Lianxi.
A young man nearby, who had been eyeing Jiang Liusui for a while, suddenly spoke up, “Aren’t you from the National Arts Performance Department?”
Jiang Liusui turned his head.
“No wonder, I’ve been staring at you for a while, and you looked so familiar. My friend used to pursue you!”
“Do you remember Lu Zhun? He was in the Broadcasting Department.” Seeing Jiang Liusui’s puzzled expression, the young man teased, “Don’t tell me you’ve had so many admirers that you can’t keep track.”
Seeing that the young man’s words were coming off as flirtatious, He Yujing gave him a half-smile and said, “Watch your mouth.”
The young man rubbed his nose and gave an apologetic smile before turning back to Jiang Liusui. “I’m serious, man. He really saw you as his dream guy. He’s definitely going to bring flowers to your graduation, and who knows, maybe he’ll confess to you again.”
“Why don’t you consider it?”
“Consider what?” He Yujing cut him off. “You’re talking about the guy from the Film Academy, right? Lu Chengtai’s youngest son, who changes boyfriends and girlfriends like changing clothes.”
“A bit of romantic experience doesn’t hurt. If Xiao Jiang agreed to date him, he’d definitely settle down. Besides, our young master Lu isn’t bad; he’s generous too. He could easily hook Xiao Jiang up with some opportunities in the future…”
The young man, a bit drunk and not thinking clearly, was starting to get on He Yujing’s nerves, who was just about to tell him to shut up.
“Then why would he even need a boyfriend or girlfriend?” Jiang Liusui said casually. “Even if I didn’t agree, shouldn’t he still only like me?”
Everyone turned to look at him. Jiang Liusui, leaning his face on his hand, looked relaxed, but there was a hint of arrogance in his expression.
The young man stared at him in surprise, not quite understanding how his good friend’s dream guy had suddenly revealed such a provocative side. Jiang Liusui smiled as he changed the subject, “Let’s talk about it later. It’s not even a sure thing yet. He might not even like me anymore.”
He Yujing, watching him finish this with a straight face, couldn’t help but smile.
Almost forgot.
This guy might look easygoing, but he’s actually pretty cunning.
That mix of wickedness and mischief—it not only scared Wu Qi back in the dressing room but even left He Yujing speechless.
The young man wasn’t offended; instead, he gave Jiang Liusui a thumbs-up. “Alright, now I get why Lu Zhun likes you so much.”
The room returned to its earlier lively atmosphere. Chi Lianxi reached out for his cigarette box, only to find it empty. “He Yujing, got any more smokes?”
The room was filled with smoke, and Jiang Liusui, who had been obediently drinking water, licked his lips, feeling a bit tempted. “I want one too.”
He Yujing was surprised. “You smoke?”
As he spoke, he picked up the pack of cigarettes on the table and handed one to both Chi Lianxi and Jiang Liusui. On set, Huang Zhicheng was a heavy smoker, and He Yujing would occasionally join in, but Jiang Liusui had never seemed influenced by them. This was the first time he’d seen Jiang Liusui smoke.
“Not much.” Jiang Liusui bit down on the cigarette, his words slightly muffled. A long, slender hand reached over to light it for him, bringing the flame to his cigarette.
Seeing He Yujing personally light his cigarette, Jiang Liusui smiled. “Thanks, I won’t call you a jerk anymore.”
“Why don’t you light one for me?” Chi Lianxi asked.
He Yujing had no idea what had gotten into Chi Lianxi tonight, wanting to interfere everywhere. “You’ve got hands, don’t you?”
“Got it, you only light up for little brothers.” Chi Lianxi nodded. “If you treat your future girlfriend as well as you do your little brother, you won’t have to worry about dying alone.”
Jiang Liusui, who had been scrolling through his phone, looked up at them, amused.
He looked young, and if he put on a school uniform, people would believe he was still in high school. But Jiang Liusui wasn’t the sweet and innocent type; his appearance had a certain pure yet decadent charm. The delicate white smoke amplified this quality, making him look even more bewitching as he smoked.
“Little brother’s got quite the personality, huh?” Chi Lianxi, struck by Jiang Liusui’s appearance, suddenly had a bold idea and quietly asked He Yujing, “Should I ask for his number? I’m about four or five years older than him. Is that okay?”
He Yujing was about to respond when he suddenly remembered that Jiang Liusui was a fan of Chi Lianxi.
Although Jiang Liusui hadn’t acted particularly excited when they met, like most fans would, if Chi Lianxi asked for his number, he’d probably give it.
He Yujing locked eyes with the eager Chi Lianxi for a moment, then calmly said, “You’re too old for him.”
“……”
Author’s Note:
Yujing, how old are you this year? Aren’t you the same age as Chi Lianxi?