CH 38.2

Lu Li pushed all his work away, and headed straight to Victoria Hotel.

He already arrived at six thirty, but waited until half past seven to go upstairs.

Xie Jianwei was already busying himself in the suite. When he saw Lu Li, he greeted him: “You’re so early.”

Lu Li couldn’t make a sound and only looked at him up and down.

Xie Jianwei blinked, “Want to eat?”

Lu Li haven’t eaten yet, but he said, “I already ate.”

Xie Jianwei looked disappointed: “I was planning on having a candlelit dinner…”

“Don’t trouble yourself too much with these things… Just let the dining hall prepare it…”

“I have to show my talents occasionally. I can’t just lay myself on the bed every single time. It’s not good if you get tired of  me.” teased Xie Jianwei.

Lu Li wanted to say: Tired? I wouldn’t, even if you’re with me for a lifetime.

Except, he couldn’t say it. After all, he agreed when Xie Jianwei thoroughly pointed out that their relationship was only that of Gold master and a secret lover, nothing else.

Xie Jianwei coaxed him, “It doesn’t matter if you already ate. Just eat a bit more! I’ll prepare the food. Just wait for a bit.” and then, he ran back to the kitchen.

Lu Li pulled his tie and went to the bathroom.

They’re staying in a large suit, complete with all things a regular house would have. The kitchen has a complete set of utensils. It’s just that no one uses it.

After coming out of the bathroom, Lu Li eyes were drawn towards the kitchen and as he watched the busy figure walking to and fro in the kitchen, an inexplicable feeling came into his heart.

It was somewhat sweet, and at the same time, it was also bitter.

In a trance, he imagined that he and Xie Jianwei were really together— that the two of them were really partners in love, doing all the things only lovers would do. His thoughts turned the hotel suite into a warm home.

But not long after… he became cool-headed. He has to.

Xie Jianwei can actually make a good dish, but it was only limited to the interstellar age. This ancient earth’s cooking wares was hard for him to use.

Fortunately, there are a lot of ready-to-cook products in this era, such steaks which was already pre-marinated. It could be served after pan frying or sear-roasting, although control of heat is also somewhat challenging to beginners.

Xie Jianwei struggled a little, but was finally able to put the two steaks on the dining table. He then lit the candles, poured the red wine, and greeted Lu Li: “Come, sit down.”

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Lu Li sat opposite him, and with the swaying light from the candles, the atmosphere turned warm.

Xie Jianwei looked at him expectantly as Lu Li picked up the knife and fork to cut a piece.

Thousands of steak with this recipe had been manufactured, which was enough to show how ‘good’ it is.

But even so, for Lu Li, it was definitely the best steak he had ever eaten. It tasted like a honey river, which slowly flowed into his throat then overwhelmed his entire chest.

It’s not so much how good the steak was, but how good his mood is.

“Is it delicious?” Xie Jianwei asked the man sitting in front of him.

No sound of acknowledgement could be heard from Lu Li.

“It doesn’t taste good? Hey, I haven’t tried cooking this before. If you like, I will practice more in the future…”

“It’s delicious.”

Xie Jianwei discreetly smiled through his eyes: “Really?”

Lu Li proved his words with action—he ate all the spicy steak!

Xie Jianwei wanted to laugh but stopped himself… what to do … I’m liking this side of him  more and more… and it made him all giddy inside.

After their candlelit dinner, the two ate another fruit….

Well, it was the navel orange, and it tasted really sweet.

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After the two exercised until the middle of the night, Lu Li saw that Xie Jianwei’s eyelids drooping, so he coaxed him: “Go to sleep,”

Xie Jianwei recalled something, “The day after tomorrow is《Uncontrollable Love》’s  premiere. Can you please attend?”

《Uncontrollable Love》, the film directed by Li Dongxing where Xie Jianwei played as the second male lead, is nearing its official release.

Upon hearing those words, Lu Li’s heart sank, but he also felt a little more at ease.

Apparently, the candlelit dinner this evening was for the premiere.

With Lu Li’s participation, the movie’s publicity would be guaranteed and its box office on the first day would definitely explode.

Lu Li shouldn’t attend an event for such a small-scale movie, and he knew no one, except for Xie Jianwei, took part in it,  so what’s the point of him going?

But Xie Jianwei did so much for tonight… Lu Li sighed.

He kissed the young man’s forehead, and whispered: “Okay.”

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When people found out that Lu Li would be present at the premiere, the movie skyrocketed in popularity, like a mortal ascending into immortality!

The entire cast was surprised. Although they thought that this move of Xie Jianwei was somewhat shameless, being able to pull off this kind of stunt also showed his capability, and besides,  they have also benefited from it. Initially, the lead actor was kind of sour towards Xie Jianwei because he felt that the latter had stolen his limelight but now, he didn’t dare to continue on doing so. He realized that if Xie Jianwei wanted to be the male lead, that man could have easily snatched it from him in the first place.

With Lu Li’s attendance, a lot of big shots also came.

People could even mistake this as the premier of《The Seventh Circle of the Devil 》instead of 《Uncontrollable Love》!

With such a lively crowd, Li Dongxing was so excited to the point where he felt like his body was on fire. He thought that convincing Lu Li to be a part of one of his future films was just around the corner!

Xie Jianwei only smiled throughout the ruckus. Of course, he didn’t care whether 《Uncontrollable Love》would become popular or not. He was just using this opportunity to stick to Lu Li.

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After the movie’s premiere, Xie Jianwei prepared another reason to entangle himself with Lu Li.   The Gold Master was very supportive,  so of course the Little Lover had to repay him well.

“Senior, I’m free on the 3rd and 4th of next month. Let’s go to the beach and play.”

Lu Li froze.

Xie Jianwei looked at him: “Are you busy?”

His schedule was not that packed. He was simply hesitant. Although he knew that Xie Jianwei was ‘repaying’ him, he was still afraid to go.

They had been staying at the hotel, almost like they’re already a family. If the two of them go travelling together, he…

“Let’s go! Please?  Let’s take a short vacation on an island with no one but the two of us.” Xie Jianwei pleaded earnestly.

This… That idea is so good, Lu Li’s heart was instantly moved, besides,  he really owned a private island.

Xie Jianwei approached him and softly said, “Let’s go on a trip for two days.”

Lu Li was coaxed to the point where his mind got distracted — let alone two days, he wouldn’t mind if it took two years or even twenty years.

He finally surrendered: “I’ll check my schedule to see if those dates are empty.”

Xie Jianwei quickly said: “It’s okay even if it’s the 5th, 6th, or 7th —it depends on you.”

“Okay.”

The 5th, 6th, and 7th was of course, out of the question. Lu Li would have preferred for them to go out as soon as possible—on the 1st and 2nd.

But since he was “busy”, he finally settled on 3rd and 4th.

Lu Li asked some people to go to the island in advance to prepare the place. On the evening of the 2nd , they didn’t inform anyone and just directly boarded  a helicopter, and in no time landed on the island.

There were also guards on the periphery, but aside from that, the entire island had completely become their world.

Morning the next day, Xie Jianwei couldn’t help but feel moved upon seeing the island under the sun : “It’s so beautiful.” The white sand, blue sea, and dazzling sunlight made the whole island so beautiful like the land of fairies.

Lu Li’s gaze turned towards the young man and responded: “Yeah.” The person beside him is more beautiful than this island.

Xie Jianwei turned sideways and embraced Lu Li by his neck, “Can I call you by your name?”

A light sparked in Lu Li’s eyes.

Xie Jianwei leaned closer to him, and stared right at his lips, “Lu Li, you truly are good.”

Lu Li’s heart trembled and he kissed the young man heedlessly.

And so, Yan Ke immediately disconnected from Xie Jianwei, and that continued for the next two days. Don’t you two get tired at all? Just hurry up and get married already! You’re killing me!

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After returning from the island, Xie Jianwei was again engaged in his busy work.

Yan Ke asked him: “My Lord, aren’t you going to meet with that white moonlight again?”

Xie Jianwei said: “Why so anxious.”

Yan Ke wanted to cry without tears:  I feel as if the Military Advisor is enjoying his time acting as a scum man too much that he’d already forgotten the things he has to do!

Xie Jianwei certainly won’t forget the important matters, but it’s true that he’s really enjoying himself.

After all, even if he’s not in a hurry, some people are.

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And as expected, some people couldn’t keep their calm… yet again.

Xie Jianwei was very busy this day, as he participated in a variety show with a younger brother from the same profession. This brother is Bai Song, the same man whom ‘Xie Jianwei’ wanted to introduce to Lu Li as a replacement before he entered the dream.

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Bai Song is somewhat similar to Xie Jianwei in temperament. Both of them are exquisite in appearance — looked a little cold when not smiling while particularly good-looking when they laugh. He always flattered Xie Jianwei. He knew exactly how this big brother Xie of his managed to rise in his career and wanted to follow suit, but he couldn’t find a good Gold Master like the Film Emperor Lu.

Some time ago, Xie Jianwei mentioned in passing that he wanted to introduce him to Lu Li and he had been thinking about it since then. But after waiting for so long without any news, he couldn’t help but feel anxious.

But there’s no use on being anxious. I have to coax Xie Jianwei, Bai Song thought.

Therefore, in this variety show, Bai Song treated himself as a foil and fully supported Xie Jianwei. In order to give the latter a better effect, he did not hesitate to smudge himself in black just so he could be in Xie Jianwei’s good graces.

Seeing him act that way, Xie Jianwei had a strong feeling that an incident would happen.

After the recording, a group of people from the crew and cast said that they would go for a drink. They are all young people, so they naturally agreed.

Bai Song said that he would drive so he didn’t touch his drinks, but  Xie Jianwei was already completely drunk by the time of seven or eight o’clock,

He shouted at Xie Jianwei: “Brother Xie, are you okay? I’ll take you home.”

Xie Jianwei pretended to be drunk. He stumbled on his feet while nodding.

Bai Song helped him into the car and drove him back to his apartment. While he was helping the ‘drunk man’ upstairs, the latter’s phone rang.

Xie Jianwei was ‘really drunk’, so forget about replying, he couldn’t even read the message.

“Do you need me to help you?” Bai Song volunteered.

Xie Jianwei nodded slightly.

Bai Song glanced at the phone, and his heart jumped. Sure enough, it was Film Emperor Lu–  Victoria … It turns out they always meet at Victoria.

Xie Jianwei asked him: “Who sent it?”

Turning his eyes away, Bai Song said warmly: “It’s Emperor Lu Li. He’s asking if you can help him send something over.”

“I can’t go.., today, I’m…. I can’t go anywhere.”

“That’s not good … since it seemed like Emperor Lu Li needs it right now.” said Bai Song in a small voice.

Xie Jianwei’s eyes narrowed silently.

Bai Song: “Should I help you deliver it?”

“Okay, thank you.”

“I don’t know which room… And the password …”

Xie Jianwei kindly told him everything.

With a thumping heart, Bai Song went straight to Victoria after dropping Xie Jianwei inside his apartment.

The moment the other person left, Xie Jianwei’s face returned to normal, and no sign of being drunk could be found on his face.

Yan Ke was a little anxious: [My Lord … Why are you doing this?]

Xie Jianwei said: [This issue is becoming an eyesore, so I’m solving it first.]

[But you pushed him towards the Marshal. Won’t the Lord Marshal become furious later?]

Xie Jianwei smiled: [It’s “It’ll be easier to fix when he becomes angry.]

Yan Ke didn’t understand, but it didn’t take a while for him to do so.  He was then utterly won over by Xie Jianwei’s way of solving things by using other people’s knife to kill. 1

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Bai Song went to Victoria with a face full of excitement. As soon as he entered the door, he met Emperor Lu Li who just came out of the bathroom.

He was nervous and thrilled, as he whispered, “Senior Lu.”

Lu Li frowned after glancing at him: “Who are you?”

Bai Song lowered his voice and said: “Brother Xie asked me to come over. He is a little tired today, so … so …” He didn’t finish his words, but anyone would understand what he meant to say.

Lu Li froze in place, his eyes turned extremely cold: “Xie Jianwei let you come?”

Bai Song lowered his head and said: “Yes, Xie brother said… he said that you are here.”

Lu Li’s head throbbed, This, what kind of——

He’s tired of me, so he found me another person as a replacement? What does he take me as huh? What does he consider himself as?!

Seeing that Lu Li didn’t say anything, Bai Song took the initiative to walk over towards the man: “I … I’ll help you blow your hair until it’s dry.”

But before he managed to stand before Lu Li, the latter warned in a hoarse voice, “Get out!”

Bai Song felt a chill creeping into his heart, and he stopped on his tracks.

Lu Li’s gaze bore right at the person in front of him. His expression looked so ugly, like a furious lion that could tear his prey at any given time: “Get out of my face!”

But Bai Song was unwilling. He opened his mouth: “I … Senior Lu … … “

Lu Li took a deep breath, then he put on a coat and pushed the door open. He didn’t know how he started the car nor how he drove on such high speed.

He couldn’t even tell whether he stepped on the accelerator or… his own heart.

The car’s speed was extremely fast— as fast as how his heart was crumbling into pieces.

You’re capable. Xie Jianwei, you really are capable…

Lu Li drove towards Xie Jianwei’s apartment full of anger.  He thought about a lot of things along the way—extremely hard — but in the end, only one thought was left:

Lock Xie Jianwei. No matter what Xie Jianwei thinks, whether he has that person’s heart or not, he would lock him to his side, so that he wouldn’t be able to push him away! Ever!

And yet, this crazy thought disappeared without a trace the moment he arrived at Xie Jianwei’s apartment.

The drunken young man was half leaning on the sofa. He was smiling, and on his hand was his mobile phone. He didn’t dial the number, but was talking hazily: “Lu Li, why don’t you pick me up? I’m kinda drunk so I can’t go to Victoria by myself. Pick me up, okay?” His drunken voice was extra soft, like a whiny spoiled kitten rubbing and coiling himself around a person’s legs.

Lu Li stared at him: “Xie Jianwei.”

Xie Jianwei looked up. His face first showed some confusion, and it was eventually replaced with a surprised look: “You’re already here? So fast!” He then tried to stand up, only to stumble.

Lu Li stared at him: “Who sent you back?”

“Bai…. Bai Song? That seems to be the case… I was hoping for him to help me go to Victoria, but he left me and ran away…. Really unreliable.”

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Translator’s note(s):

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