Chapter 54 Hug and Smile

Translated by Eve

Edited by Kara

After moving back to the apartment, the only thing Song Xuanhe was happy about was that the quality of his meals had gone up.

Unfortunately, he also had concerns. In the book, at this point in time, Xiao Yuanmu had already gone to Hai City for work. But in this world, Xiao Yuanmu was still with the Song Group and seemed to have no intention of resigning.

Therefore, today at lunch, Song Xuanhe, who rarely spoke while eating, started to ask Xiao Yuanmu questions about work.

“The beef is really tender today.” Song Xuanhe swallowed down a piece of beef, watching Xiao Yuanmu, who didn’t even look up from his bowl of food, for his reaction. He continued, “But, there’s a bit too much cumin. Put a bit less in next time.”

Xiao Yuanmu looked up and said, “You said that you wanted a lot of cumin in your beef this morning.”

“Did I?” Song Xuanhe’s gaze flickered back and forth, looking guilty. He then defended himself. “But, I didn’t say that you had to put in this much.”

Xiao Yuanmu gave him an indifferent glance before looking away to continue eating.

“I heard that there’s a new hire in your department?” Song Xuanhe picked up another piece of beef and chose a random topic to lead in with. Acting as if he was just mentioning this casually, he said, “Seems like he graduated from the same school as us. How is he at work?”

Xiao Yuanmu’s hand paused while picking up food with his chopsticks. After meticulously chewing and swallowing the food in his mouth, Xiao Yuanmu calmly said, “I don’t know him.”

“He’s in the same field as you, and he’s your junior, how could you not know him?” Song Xuanhe asked, “I heard that he has good grades and good practical skills. Do you think your manager will come to rely on him more?”

“I don’t know.” Xiao Yuanmu’s voice was cold.

“I heard that when he graduated, the Bank of Hai City had wanted him to come intern for them. In order to snatch him, the Song Group gave him a starting salary that is twenty percent higher than normal. During the managers’ meeting yesterday, the venture investment division’s manager seemed to really appreciate him. He complimented him for a long time, saying that he had unique insights. I heard that he had made a profit of ten million in stocks while he had still been testing the waters as a university student. Don’t know if that’s true though.”

“I don’t know.”

Seeing that Xiao Yuanmu showed no reaction, Song Xuanhe placed his chopsticks down and got to the point while pretending to be nonchalant. “If your manager starts to rely on him a lot and starts to marginalize you, will you feel like you won’t be able to realize your aspirations here and quit?”

Xiao Yuanmu finally spoke more than three words. He asked, “Are you saying all of this because you’re afraid that I’ll quit?”

No. I want to get information from you and then make your department manager marginalize you, thereby forcing you to quit.

Song Xuanhe shook his head and said, “I was just asking.”

“I won’t be quitting for now,” Xiao Yuanmu said flatly.

So, you’ll quit in the future?

Song Xuanhe’s eyes lit up, but his brows furrowed. He asked in a displeased tone, “So, you’re saying that you’ll quit in the future? How long is ‘for now?’ Ten days? Half a month?”

Xiao Yuanmu stopped moving his chopsticks. His still eyes sized up Song Xuanhe calmly. Just as Song Xuanhe couldn’t keep up the angry facade anymore, he said in a cool voice, “You don’t want me to leave?”

I want you to leave!

“Of course not.” Song Xuanhe’s brows were still furrowed. He looked at Xiao Yuanmu like the other was an ungrateful wretch. “This is my family’s company. Do you think I’d want you to be an employee who wastes our administration’s time and effort because you can’t even stick around for half a year?”

Xiao Yuanmu wiped his lips clean with a napkin. The meaning in his voice was unclear. “I thought that you wanted me to leave.”

“How could I….?”

“Since you don’t want me to leave, I won’t.” Xiao Yuanmu put down his napkin, and his peach blossom eyes slightly curved. His tone was filled with meaning. “After all, you are my boyfriend.”

After the assistant had left upon clearing their dishes, Xiao Yuanmu also took his leave as he had something to deal with during the break.

As soon as the door to his office had closed, Song Xuanhe kicked his desk. He then shot up to his feet and walked over to the french windows. He stared at the infinitesimally tiny people and cars on the road below before childishly smacking the clean, bright window to vent his rage.

Song Xuanhe’s phone rang while he was still mulling over the problem of getting Xiao Yuanmu to quit. He didn’t even look at the caller ID and simply swiped to accept the call.

“Song shao!”

The other party hadn’t seemed to have expected that Song Xuanhe would pick up. There was a trace of surprised delight in their voice.

When Song Xuanhe heard this female voice that seemed a bit familiar, he brought the phone away from his ear. When he saw who it was, he turned on speaker-mode and placed his phone on the desk. He then sat down on the sofa and asked coldly, “What does Film Empress Liu need?”

“Song shao…I was desperate and had just been calling everyone. That’s why I just so happened to call you.” Liu Xu’s voice came through from the phone’s speaker. There was a slight rasp to it. “I didn’t think you would really pick up.”

Song Xuanhe didn’t pay attention to what was happening in the entertainment circles. However, he was around Zhou Nan, whose family had business in the film and television industry. Therefore, he did know about Liu Xu’s current situation.

But, that didn’t mean that he wanted to continue this conversation. He said with a bit of impatience, “What’s wrong?”

“I…want to invite you to the premiere of Guangmang. It’s the movie for which you visited the set, the one in which Director Huang was an assistant director.” Liu Xu’s quiet voice was husky, making it sound soft and pleasant. “I’m asking if you would come, because Director Huang wishes to see you there.”

The corner of Song Xuanhe’s lips rose. He knew what Liu Xu was trying to do.

She had sent information about Zhang Xiuya and Song Guochao to Li Nianan, but Li Nianan had already known about it. Therefore, she had ignored Liu Xu. When Liu Xu hadn’t gotten the outcome she had wanted, she refused to give up. Who knew where she had gotten the information about Zhang Xiuya’s pregnancy, but she must have anonymously sent an email to instigate Zhang Xiuya to try to wiggle her way into the Song Family. That was what had caused the Song Family’s farce/scandal.

Naturally, while Song Guochao had still been hard-pressed over this scandal, he hadn’t thought about what had caused his affair to be exposed. However, after things had settled, and he had time to think, he realized that this had been no coincidence. Although Song Guochao was incapable on his own, he still had access to the Song Family’s resources. Furthermore, he had managed to get Zhang Xiuya to confess. Like this, it had only been a matter of time before he had been able to follow the trail of clues that led back to Liu Xu.

As such, Liu Xu’s career in film was ruined by Song Guochao, who had been in a rage of humiliation over the conflict at home. She was now on the verge of being shut out of the industry.

Liu Xu was looking for him but didn’t directly ask him to speak to her company. Instead, she was using a roundabout way by inviting him to her movie’s premiere. This was probably because she wanted to make use of his identity.

Liu Xu’s company had decided to cut off her resources under Song Guochao’s orders. But if Song Guochao’s son was to appear at her premiere in support of her, and ambiguous photos of them and a rumour were to be spread around, the executives at Liu Xu’s companies would probably reconsider their decision.

When that time came, as long as Liu Xu let it be known that Song Guochao no longer had any say in the Song Group while Song Xuanhe owned twenty percent of the group’s share, she would be able to use Song Xuanhe to resolve her difficulties.

He had to admit: Liu Xu’s idea was good.

At present, the fact that he and Song Guochao were not on good terms was no secret. Anyone who inquired about it would be able to find that out. Furthermore, Song Xuanhe was known to be overbearing and haughty on the outside. Based on this information, one would think that there would be a very high possibility that he would go against Song Guochao when he heard about the other shutting out Liu Xu. When the time came, people would only think that the Song father and son were using her as a way to battle it out. Meanwhile, Liu Xu, the only person to benefit from this, wouldn’t be noticed.

After still not hearing Song Xuanhe’s response despite having waited for a long time, Liu Xu grew nervous. She softened her voice even more. “I just asked my assistant to send the premiere invitation to your company. If you don’t have time, you don’t have to come. But, this movie is quite light-hearted. I think that it’ll help you relax if you come watch it after work.”

Because he knew that Liu Xu was only saying this to get him to agree, Song Xuanhe didn’t reply immediately. He only said in an insipid tone, “I’ll think about it.”

Hearing that Song Xuanhe wasn’t rejecting her right away, Liu Xu was overjoyed. She promptly said, “Okay. The director and the cast are all really looking forward to seeing you there.”

【Are you going to go?】

Since the car accident, the System had rarely spoken. When he heard its voice, Song Xuanhe was a bit surprised. Regardless, he still replied. “Yes. Why not? It’s interesting.”

【In any case, there’s no scenes you need to act out. It will take a long time to get Xiao Yuanmu to return to the Xiao Family anyway, so you can do what you want.】

Song Xuanhe nodded but didn’t speak.

The System hesitated and then added：【Before, you told me that you suspected that Xiao Yuanmu had transmigrated from the original book and that the point in time he had come from was the car accident with Sun Jinren. I passed that over to general HQ. HQ told me that Xiao Yuanmu had indeed transmigrated from the original book, but they could not figure out from exactly when in the timeline. 】

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【Aside from the car accident, there shouldn’t be any other event that could cause transmigration,】Song Xuanhe said.

【Why do you think that?】The System said：【He could also have come from later in the timeline. Not even the main System can determine when it had been right now.】

【If it were after he had returned to the Xiao Family, then he would have already found his way back there by now. Furthermore, even if he didn’t go back to the Xiao Family, he would have found a way to contact his future subordinates and make detailed plans for what’s to come next.】Song Xuanhe said while lying down on the sofa：【But, he hasn’t contacted the Xiao Family nor anyone else related to the Xiao Family. His subordinates whose names were mentioned in the book haven’t even shown up yet.】

【Putting aside everyone else, his capable assistant, Wang Dong, had become destitute and homeless around the same time as the orphanage Director’s death. The book had been very clear on the timing of these events. Later on, Wang Dong would become the only person Xiao Yuanmu considered a friend. During one of Xiao Yuanmu’s soliloquies, he had said that, if he had known Wang Dong when the other had been in need, he would have helped him. But, there’s no one named Wang Dong around Xiao Yuanmu right now. Therefore, I am certain that the point of time he must have transmigrated from is the car accident.】

The System thought that Song Xuanhe’s analysis made sense：【That does seem to be the case.】

【This is the most likely possibility.】Although Song Xuanhe was very certain, he didn’t want to say that it was definitive.

*

The premiere began at eight o’clock. After Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu got off work, they had dinner together before driving over unhurriedly.

Originally, Song Xuanhe had thought that Xiao Yuanmu would have no interest in an occasion like this and would not come with. He hadn’t expected for the other to also stand up and say that he also wanted to attend upon hearing him talk about it.

It was about ten minutes prior to the start of the premiere when the two of them arrived. Although there were many journalists and media representatives gathered outside the movie theatre, the red carpet was clear. The guest book was already filled with names. It seemed like the majority of people had already arrived.

Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu had changed into more relaxed clothing after going home. But because the season was already shifting towards winter, even if they were wearing tailored coats, it still looked appropriate for the occasion.

It was just that, after the reporters who didn’t recognize them took pictures of them, they quietly whispered to one another. “Who are they? Are they the rumoured newcomers from Zhuangyue Entertainment? They look quite good, especially the one on the left. His looks are Heaven-defying. I wonder if he got surgery abroad.”

“Surgery?” A reporter who did recognize Song Xuanhe rolled his eyes. “The one on the right is the little young master of the Song Group. Although I don’t recognize the one beside him, look at his aura. Can a little celebrity who got plastic surgery give off such a feeling? I can tell that you have just entered this line of work with one glance. You can’t even read people. Can’t believe your seniors dared to bring you here. Are they not afraid of you offending somebody?”

The reporter who had spoken up first felt rather wronged. However, the other reporter was right. He had only gotten hired a month ago. The only reason he had been able to come along was because there weren’t enough staff on hand. Otherwise, he’d never have gotten this opportunity at this point of his career.

The other reporters had also heard the second reporter’s words. When they had finished taking their pictures, they discussed amongst themselves. “I wonder who that man next to Song shaoye is. With that aura, he must come from a big family. He might even possess some power. But, I’ve never seen him before, so I have no clue which family he must belong to.”

“Those young masters of influential families aren’t like celebrities. They’re protected very well by their families.” Another reporter laughed. “When they’re born, they’re already worth upwards of a hundred million. If their privacy is not protected well, they’d be constantly kidnapped. After growing up, most of them don’t like to be in the spotlight. Don’t bother guessing. The less they appear in public, the more influential their family may be.”

The other people agreed. Only one older reporter furrowed his brows. He muttered, “Why do I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before…?”

Before he could finish that thought, he heard someone shout, “Film Emperor Xue has arrived!”

The crowd was thrown into a flurry. Every media representative pointed their cameras at the young film emperor, who had just appeared on the red carpet. The lights flashed non-stop.

After Xue Mian had signed his name and walked in, the crowd finally settled down outside. Someone sighed, “I hadn’t expected for Film Emperor Xue to attend this premiere!”

The others were also pleasantly surprised. “After Film Emperor Xue’s last film ended, he hasn’t appeared in public much. We’re really lucky this time. We finally have something to report back with!”

The newcomer didn’t get it. “Didn’t we just get a picture of the Song Group’s young master? Won’t he attract views?”

The reporter who had lectured him earlier sighed and said, “Do you think you can release pictures of the Song Group’s young master just because you got ahold of it? The only reason we recognize him is because he didn’t bother hiding his identity. But if we were to publish his pictures without his approval, we’ll get a letter from the Song Group’s lawyer the next morning. Not to mention, there’s also the other young master whose identity is unknown. If we release his picture, we’ll probably end up getting into big trouble.”

The newcomer once again learned something new. He nodded his head, expressing that he understood. “So, it’s like that….”

The old reporter sincerely and earnestly said, “You still have much to learn.”

……

Song Xuanhe, who had been pulled over by Director Huang as soon as he had arrived at the movie theatre, had no idea what was happening outside. The only thing he was thinking about right now was how to get the incessantly babbling Huang Cong to shut up.

“I have already started shooting my film. Song shao, trust me, this film is going to be huge. I will not let you down. This film will sell, and it will also be profound. I think that it’s very possible for this film to get a nomination. But whether it’ll win an award….”

“Xue Mian has come….”

Whispers arose behind them, interrupting Huang Cong’s words. Song Xuanhe also turned his head, pretending to be shocked, and looked at Xue Mian.

With this one look, Song Xuanhe realized that this would be interesting.

Although Xue Mian was young, he had already made a name for himself. At the tender age of twenty-three, he had won a Best Actor award. Furthermore, it wasn’t a “Best Actor” award from a less prestigious domestic awards show but rather one from one of the three most prestigious shows in the world. Despite this, he never acted arrogant. He was still very modest towards staff members.

As he walked over, Xue Mian held a patient smile on his face the whole time. He chatted with all of the staff. Even when someone had pretended to accidentally bump into him, he just gently told them to be careful. It was obvious that he had great self-restraint and patience.

It was just that his seat was in the middle of the first row. He apologetically said to a staff member, “I’m friends with Song shaoye and Mr. Xiao. I also have something to discuss with Director Huang. I don’t know if I could trouble you to help me switch seats, so I can sit in the second row?”

When the staff member heard Xue Mian’s gentle voice, although they were very excited, they still hesitated. “Film Emperor Xue, I really want to help you, but the seats have already been decided. I have to ask if any person sitting in the second row would be willing to trade seats first. Only if someone is willing will I be able to help you switch.”

“Of course.” Xue Mian said gracefully, “It’s fine if no one agrees. I can chat with Director Huang after the premiere ends. Don’t worry about it.”

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The staff member naturally didn’t worry. This was because someone had overheard their conversation. The small-time actor sitting next to Xiao Yuanmu immediately stood up, acting like it would be his honour to have Xue Mian sit in his seat. He ardently let Xue Mian sit down before heading to the first row.

Honestly speaking, even if it hadn’t been for Xue Mian’s status, that actor would have been perfectly happy to sit in the first row either way. After all, those in the first row were the chief writer and the director. He was naturally very willing to sit there. Furthermore, if he could get the Film Emperor to owe him a favour as well, it was all the more worth it.

“Song shao, Mr. Xiao.” At this moment, Xue Mian had already walked over to the seat beside Xiao Yuanmu. He flashed them a refined smile. “We meet again.”

Song Xuanhe glanced at him, his own lips curling up. “I didn’t know we were friends.”

Xue Mian remained unruffled. His smile was still gentle. “I have always wanted to be friends with Song shaoye and Mr. Xiao, so I was presumptuous in calling you my friends. I hope you don’t mind.”

Song Xuanhe obviously didn’t care. However, Xiao Yuanmu, who was sitting beside him, frowned.

Xue Mian’s attention was perpetually on Xiao Yuanmu, so he naturally caught sight of his expression. His eyes dimmed, but he kept smiling. “It’s been a long time. Mr. Xiao, you’ve become more handsome.”

Xiao Yuanmu nodded indifferently and didn’t speak.

Xue Mian didn’t fawn over him either. Instead, he talked to Song Xuanhe over Xiao Yuanmu. “Song shaoye, I heard that you’ve invested in two of Director Huang’s films. Are you planning on entering the film and television business?”

Xue Mian, who had always acted gentle and courteous, sounded tactful when he spoke. Even when he asked a question that usually shouldn’t be raised to a stranger, especially since Song Xuanhe had said they weren’t close, because his voice was gentle and refined, and his every action was laced with elegance, it hadn’t sounded rude.

“No.” Song Xuanhe glanced at Huang Cong, who had scurried on over, and said, “I just wanted to invest casually.”

Because of the film matter, Huang Cong had interacted with Song Xuanhe a few times. He knew that Song Xuanhe was not as lofty and hard-to-deal-with as rumoured. It was just that the other didn’t like to beat around the bush. Therefore, Huang Cong had slowly stopped with the deferential, flattering attitude he had had in the beginning. He would even occasionally take a mile when given an inch and joke around. At this moment, he jumped in with a smile. “Song shao has a discerning eye. He took an interest in my scripts as soon as he saw them. Maybe after I have made him some money, he’ll decide to enter the industry.”

“Oh?” Xue Mian smiled and asked, “I heard that Director Huang had received two good scripts, and that one is already in the middle of being shot. Meanwhile, the other one is in the preparation stage. Would it be possible to give me the honour of auditioning for it?”

Huang Cong sucked in a deep breath, pleasantly surprised. A moment later, he finally reacted. “Really? Does Film Emperor Xue plan on acting in my movie?”

Xue Mian nodded. “Actually, I won’t hide it from you, but I’ve always been rather interested in that script you took. It was just that there had never been a director who had wanted to film it before. It would have been really hard for me to pull together a cast and crew, so when I heard that you had picked it up, I was really happy.”

Huang Cong immediately became excited. He started to sound Xue Mian out by chatting about how he was going to go about shooting it. His hands were wildly gesticulating in the air, making it obvious that he was ecstatic. Xue Mian was also very good at interacting with others. Every one of his words perfectly scratched just the right spot. Not long after, Director Huang, who had just been calling him Film Emperor Xue, was now calling him Xiao Xue.

It was just that Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu, who were sitting between these two, were forced to listen to their conversation. Although they weren’t annoyed, it was still uncomfortable.

At this moment, Xue Mian seemed to realize that he had gotten too into his conversation with Huang Cong. He looked at Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu apologetically. “Sorry, I forgot about everything else while talking to Director Huang about work. We must have bothered you.”

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Song Xuanhe didn’t believe that Xue Mian, who had an extremely good reputation within the industry and was said to conduct himself well despite his young age, would have made such a novice error. Furthermore, when he had been speaking to Director Huang just now, every time he had said something profound or unique, he had discreetly glanced at Xiao Yuanmu from the corner of his eye. Song Xuanhe wasn’t blind. He knew what the other was up to.

It was just that Xiao Yuanmu, who had been watched by Xue Mian this whole time, didn’t seem to notice. From beginning to end, his eyes were calmly on the screen in front of them. When he had heard Xue Mian’s apology, he only spoke in an emotionless, plain tone, “The movie has already started. You’re not only disturbing us, you’re also disturbing the other viewers.”

The author has something to say:

Xiao Yuanmu: Am I a man who will make a mistake in front of my partner?

Song Xuanhe: Thank you to all the older brother, older sister, younger brother, younger sister, auntie, mom, girlfriend and wife fans for your support! I will definitely work harder in the future to make everyone love me!

Xiao Yuanmu: What’s a girlfriend fan or wife fan?

Song Xuanhe: People who like me because of how ‘boyfriend material’ I am. I’m drawing in fans with my abilities. Do you have a problem with that?

Xiao Yuanmu: As long as you only have one husband, that’s fine.

Eve: OMG HAHAHAHA. This little ‘game of wits’ between them is so funny. SXH trying to be sneaky and XYM teasing him like this kills me. And then XM, honey, move over. Our MuMu only has eyes for one person. Lastly, I am 100% a mom fan for SXH. My baby <3