Chapter 48: The Night He Followed Him Home

Pei Liu, however, found an opportunity to secretly talk to Little Tian. Successfully tempted by ice cream, she gave up on watching the filming and went to the side to continue watching ants move house.

Director Chen called out: “Shen Wenrui, Yu Chu.”

Calling actors by their character names on set helped them get into character. After Director Chen explained the scene to them for a while, he told them to start.

This scene was the first meeting between Yu Chu and Shen Wenrui.

As a college freshman, Yu Chu went to a flower shop to pick up flowers for a senior from the student union.

The flower shop was brightly lit, filled with clusters of blooming, fragrant flowers. Every detail showed the owner’s careful and meticulous attention, making people feel very comfortable.

It was Yu Chu’s first time in a flower shop, and he looked a bit lost: “Hello, is anyone here?”

From behind a flower wall, a person stepped out. His silver hair was loosely tied back. He wore the flower shop’s warm brown apron, his shirt sleeves rolled up, revealing slender forearms. In his hands, he held a pot of snow willow, its tiny white flowers blooming like snow covering the branches.

The man smiled, gentle and refined: “I’m the owner. What kind of flowers would you like to buy?”

Yu Chu stared at his silver hair in surprise.

The man seemed accustomed to everyone reacting this way upon seeing him and explained calmly: “It’s genetic.”

Yu Chu hurriedly apologized and explained his purpose. The man turned and brought out a bouquet, handing it over, and asked seemingly casually: “Your voice sounds a bit different from on the phone.”

Yu Chu signed his name: “That wasn’t me; I’m picking it up for my senior.”

“I see. You’re a college student, then?”

“Yes, at Long University.”

“That’s very close. Take a business card. If you ever come to order flowers, I’ll give you a 20% discount.”

Yu Chu froze slightly. Although he didn’t intend to buy flowers, he wasn’t good at refusing, so he accepted it. On it was the name of the flower shop and the owner’s name.

“Shen Wenrui, that’s my name.”

The silver-haired man smiled. With the gentle sea of flowers as a background, it was easy to feel a sense of closeness.

Yu Chu returned the smile and inadvertently noticed soil and a trace of bright red blood on the owner’s fingertips. He reminded him: “You’re bleeding.”

Shen Wenrui looked down, his lips curling into a smile deeper than before: “So I am, I didn’t even notice.”

Yu Chu picked up the bouquet, said goodbye, and left. The wind chimes hanging on the door jingled, making a crisp sound.

Shen Wenrui watched his figure disappear, bent down to arrange the flowers, then walked to the door and flipped the wooden sign to “Temporarily Closed.”

With a click, he locked the door.

He turned and walked unhurriedly toward the back of the flower shop, his footsteps light, humming an unknown tune with a somewhat eerie melody.

He rounded a wall and opened the heavy iron door of an inconspicuous storage room in the corner. In the darkness, lying on the floor, was a middle-aged man, bound hand and foot and gagged. He was battered and bruised, blood streaming down his head. Seeing Shen Wenrui appear, he immediately struggled in terror, letting out muffled cries for help, writhing desperately like a fat grub.

“What are you making all that noise for?” Shen Wenrui said, his face cold and his eyes full of disgust. Those few words instantly silenced the man on the floor, leaving him trembling uncontrollably.

“I told you not to move around, why couldn’t you understand? You almost got me caught. That’s a treasure I’ve had my eye on for a long time.” Shen Wenrui smiled charmingly, the cold gleam of a sharp blade reflecting on his face.

Still laughing, he plunged the knife down without hesitation. Blood splattered onto his face.

He didn’t care at all, humming his song as he expertly disposed of the body.

Inside the studio, it was exceptionally quiet; everyone held their breath.

Even though they knew it was acting, it felt like they had truly stumbled upon a murder scene. Their hearts were filled with terror and tension, terrified of being noticed and targeted by the killer.

Even Director Chen forgot to yell “cut.” It wasn’t until Shen Jin reminded him that everyone snapped out of their daze. Wiping cold sweat from his forehead, Director Chen praised Shen Jin highly.

When the actor “killed” by Shen Jin got up, his hands and legs wouldn’t listen to him, his heart still palpitating: “f*ck, I thought I was really going to die. I almost peed my pants from fear.”

The people nearby wanted to laugh, but on second thought, even watching from the sidelines felt terrifyingly oppressive; facing it directly would probably be lethal.

Pei Liu was awestruck, marveling: “Too amazing.”

It truly deserved the phrase: Terrifying as this.

Qin Wu knew the industry and had seen more. He recognized that this person had astonishing talent. Even against veteran actors, he wouldn’t be overshadowed and could handle it with ease. Normally, he would be very happy to collaborate and become friends with someone as outstanding as Shen Jin. But now the situation was different. Seeing the utmost admiration in Pei Liu’s eyes, he panicked and lied through his teeth: “It was alright; many people can act like this.”

Pei Liu believed it to be true: “Everyone’s professional skills are that strong?”

He couldn’t help but doubt himself; his own acting was mediocre, the contrast was brutal.

“No, I need to rehearse with Shen Jin more; I can’t hold everyone back.”

Qin Wu: “???”

He said that so Pei Liu wouldn’t like Shen Jin, not to encourage them to interact more!

Pei Liu walked over. Shen Jin was talking with the screenwriter. The screenwriter’s eyes shone brightly, looking at him as if he were his own son, talking at length. But Shen Jin’s expression was distant; he found an excuse and slipped away.

As soon as he turned and saw Pei Liu, the chill in his eyes faded, replaced by a bit of warmth.

“Looking for me?”

Pei Liu nodded: “Let’s rehearse.”

“Okay.”

For the subsequent filming, Qin Wu kept a close watch on Shen Jin, determined not to let him steal his wife. But his actions were quite limited; after all, he was the male lead and had many scenes, so he couldn’t keep an eye on them all the time. Moreover, their reason for rehearsing was perfectly legitimate and adequate; he couldn’t possibly forcefully interfere, right? If he did, the god’s favorability would definitely drop significantly.

Until one day, an assistant brought Pei Liu something.

An exquisite paper bag containing an intricate, beautiful small box. He told Pei Liu it was a gift.

Qin Wu was very surprised: “Why give me a gift?”

Pei Liu smiled: “To return the favor. Didn’t you give me that deity statue before?”

Qin Wu: “…”

That wasn’t me at all. This gift is for the god!

Pei Liu asked: “Aren’t you going to open it and take a look?”

How could Qin Wu dare to open it? He forced himself to say: “I’ll open it later… By the way, can I ask what it is?”

Pei Liu named a luxury brand; it was the newest series of men’s watches. He had specifically researched and found out Qin Wu really liked this brand.

Hearing this, Qin Wu was tempted. This was exactly what he wanted, and it wasn’t easy to buy; Pei Liu had clearly put a lot of thought into it.

While they were talking, Shen Jin was also there, watching with a faint, unreadable smile, saying nothing.

Finally, Qin Wu held the paper bag as if holding a hot potato, unsure of what to do.

He whispered reverently to the deity statue, conveying everything, and begged the god to take the gift.

But there was no reaction.

Qin Wu opened his eyes, his headache worsening. Just as he was about to stand up, an icy, oppressive feeling suddenly appeared, and the room temperature plummeted, forcing him to kneel again.

Black mist materialized out of thin air, slowly revealing a human form.

Silver hair, blue eyes—a familiar face.

With a reach of his hand, the black mist wrapped around the gift bag and floated it into his grasp.

The god cast a faint, emotionless glance at him.

Then, he vanished completely, as if he had never appeared.

The air resumed flowing, and everything returned to normal.

But Qin Wu was too shocked; he felt like his heart was about to explode, completely unable to recover.

Even the worst social death couldn’t compare to him right now.

These past few days, the memories of him interfering with the god’s contact with Pei Liu, secretly speaking ill of the god, and looking at the god with critical, wary eyes flashed rapidly through his mind.

Qin Wu just wanted to smash his head against the wall and reincarnate.

When the assistant opened the door and saw him looking as if he had lost the will to live, he was totally confused: “Brother Wu, what’s wrong?”

Qin Wu said bleakly: “…Some people are alive, but they are already dead.”

The assistant was even more confused, his head full of question marks.

In the days that followed, Pei Liu distinctly felt a change in Qin Wu’s attitude.

Whenever Shen Jin appeared, Qin Wu would immediately become extremely docile, like a mouse meeting a cat. Moreover, he felt that Qin Wu seemed to be avoiding him, not wanting to interact much with him.

Pei Liu felt like someone suddenly alienated by a friend; his feelings were very complicated. He didn’t like keeping things bottled up and overthinking, so he asked Qin Wu directly: “Did I do something to offend you?”

Qin Wu decisively shook his head: “How is that possible? Of course not!”

Pei Liu frowned in confusion: “Then why do you…”

Qin Wu immediately said: “I respect you very much.”

Pei Liu: “…?”

Why use such a respectful form of address, making it sound like I’m a senior from a much older generation?

Watching this scene, Little Tian became very vigilant. Is this dim-witted human trying to steal my dad?

Pei Liu was speechless but found it amusing: “Of course not. If anything, it’s like you treat me as an ancestor.”

Little Tian counted on her fingers, calculating seriously: “Older than Dad is Grandpa, Great-Grandpa. I am Dad’s daughter, so…”

Her eyes lit up, and she announced the answer loudly: “He’s my grandson!”

Pei Liu burst out laughing, unable to hold it in.

Qin Wu wasn’t just making up excuses; Pei Liu could feel it. When they sat together to eat normally, Qin Wu acted like an obedient junior; if Shen Jin and he didn’t pick up their chopsticks, he wouldn’t eat first.

The atmosphere was extremely subtle.

But Shen Jin was very calm, as if this was the most normal thing in the world, leading Pei Liu to doubt himself and slowly accept it.

Pei Liu found it awkward and amusing, but in the eyes of others, it was a scene worthy of maddening jealousy.

Lu Xiang stood not far away, staring intently.

He disliked Pei Liu, believing he had used some underhanded methods to make the Best Actor treat him this way. If it were him, he could do the same, and even do it better.

When Pei Liu came out after touching up his makeup, he saw Director Chen, Lu Xiang, and Qin Wu having a good chat in front of the camera.

When Lu Xiang put his mind to flattering someone, he spoke beautifully. Having been acting seriously lately, Director Chen’s attitude toward him had softened considerably. Qin Wu had scenes with Lu Xiang coming up, so naturally, he had to prepare. Smiling, Lu Xiang deliberately created an image of being familiar and close with the director and the Best Actor. He had his assistant take photos to post online, pretending to be a crew member praising his good acting, Director Chen’s appreciation, and his friendship with the Best Actor.

Lu Xiang glanced at Pei Liu from the corner of his eye, smug and provocative.

But Pei Liu didn’t even catch this look. He went straight to his seat and started discussing the upcoming scene with Shen Jin beside him.

Lu Xiang felt like he had punched cotton—frustrated and very aggrieved.

Suddenly, Pei Liu coughed twice, his voice a bit hoarse.

Qin Wu’s expression changed, and he immediately walked over briskly, showing more concern and tension than if he were treating his own parents: “Are you sick?!”

Pei Liu shook his head: “No, just a dry throat, maybe caught a slight chill.”

Qin Wu turned to ask his assistant to buy some cold medicine, but Shen Jin had already handed Pei Liu a cup of ginger brown sugar water, still steaming.

“Why do you have this?” Pei Liu asked, slightly surprised.

Shen Jin said: “I brought it. It’s cold, easy to catch a chill.”

“Thank you.” Pei Liu smiled, lowered his head, and sipped slowly. Shen Jin watched quietly.

Qin Wu suddenly felt he was very superfluous and walked away silently. He didn’t want to eat dog food, but he didn’t have the courage to kick over the dog bowl either, so he could only be cowardly and brave in his heart—Fine, then I’ll leave!

Pei Liu’s assistant, Xiao Li, sighed silently. He was supposed to take care of Brother Pei’s daily needs, so why hadn’t he been of any use yet? Getting paid without working was great, but he was also afraid of losing his job. He had gone from playing on his phone relaxed and carefree to playing on his phone nervously and fearfully.

Lu Xiang glared hatefully, his face extremely ugly. He had worked so hard to curry favor with the Best Actor, finally getting a bit of a good attitude, yet Pei Liu only had to cough once without saying anything, and Qin Wu immediately rushed over with eager concern. In this contrast, he looked like a clown.

Director Chen called Lu Xiang a few times without getting a response. Annoyed, he turned and shouted: “Action!”

Lu Xiang’s mindset was unsteady, leading to several NGs. In the end, his performance was merely passable, nothing spectacular.

Next, it was time for Pei Liu and Shen Jin’s scene.

On a pitch-black night road, only a few dim streetlights illuminated small patches of the ground, blurry and unclear.

A slender figure walked forward, casting a long shadow on the ground that swayed slightly with his steps. Suddenly, aside from his own footsteps, another person’s footsteps joined in, following closely behind him.

At first, Yu Chu didn’t pay much attention, but no matter which direction he turned, or whether he walked fast or slow, those footsteps followed like a shadow, like a ghost.

His expression changed as he realized something was wrong. His hand instinctively gripped his backpack strap, gripping so tightly his knuckles turned white.

Someone was tailing him.

Women fear this kind of thing, but Yu Chu had experienced bullying and carried psychological trauma. His skin had a sickly pallor, his body wasn’t strong, and he lacked the courage to confront them. His mind instantly flashed through various cases of psychopathic murders.

He swallowed nervously and fearfully. Although he knew acting abnormally now would provoke the other person to attack faster, he couldn’t help but break into a sudden run, thinking that as long as he reached a crowded place, he would be safe.

Sure enough, rapid footsteps sounded behind him, getting closer and closer.

Yu Chu could only run faster.

In the shaky, dim footage, there was only heavy panting and the chaotic, overlapping sounds of footsteps, each one smashing forcefully against his heart.

A grotesque hand reached out toward him from behind, about to grab him…

Yu Chu rounded a corner and bumped into someone. The other person’s hands rested on his shoulders; utterly terrified, he struggled desperately.

“Yu Chu, Yu Chu, calm down, what happened?”

The voice was gentle and very soothing.

Yu Chu finally snapped out of it, looking up blankly at the person. In the dark night, the silver hair reflected the moonlight, exuding a chilling aura, but the familiar face made Yu Chu sigh in relief.

He grabbed Shen Wenrui’s sleeve tightly, his voice hoarse and trembling: “Behind me… someone was following me…”

Shen Wenrui put an arm around his shoulder, looking behind them. He stared coldly at the person in the shadows, his eyes issuing a vicious warning, yet his tone was oppositely gentle: “There’s no one, don’t be afraid.”

“Walking at night is indeed unsafe. My house is nearby; let’s go there for a hot cup of tea first. You look terrible.” Shen Wenrui held his face, speaking in an almost coaxing manner.

Yu Chu was still frightened, his fear yet to dissipate. Unable to resist, he nodded in agreement instinctively.

Shen Wenrui smiled, a twisted joy in his eyes, and led him toward his home.

The two walked side-by-side. Under the streetlight, their shadows slanted and overlapped on the ground, as if the taller shadow slowly devoured the other, finally merging into one, inseparable.