MACRM Chapter 85

Wu Chen shuddered violently, staring at Lin Zhu in terror, scrambling backward.

Lin Zhu raised a hand and easily caught his tie again, locking onto Wu Chen’s eyes.

What he had read from Song Tianlang’s agent had been too scattered and chaotic; managing to piece together this thread had been pure luck. Lin Zhu feared there might be more contingencies. Not daring to relax, enduring the splitting headache, he was about to read further—

—when a warm, dry palm suddenly covered his eyes gently.

Lin Zhu trembled faintly. His breath stalled.

Zhong Yao pulled him lightly away from Wu Chen and into his arms, his palm carefully soothing the knife-tense line of his agent’s shoulders and back. The pressure was still as gentle as ever.

He stroked Lin Zhu’s back again and again, voice soft and unhurried. “It’s alright.”

“It’s already over, Xiao Zhu. Be good. Relax…”

The heat from Zhong Yao’s body seemed to scald him. Lin Zhu’s shoulders shrank instinctively. His eyes suddenly stung unbearably.

“Not yet.”

His breath was almost insufficient. His chest rose and fell slightly a few times before he managed to finish. “It’s not resolved yet. Ge, I’ll hand him over to the police and make a statement.”

He added quietly, “All the actors here… mustn’t get dragged in. This kind of reputation can’t stick.”

He had rushed over without any preparation. How such an important matter had reached his ears, why he had only arrived now even knowing it in advance. There were plenty of illogical gaps. He hadn’t thought through how to explain them.

Zhong Yao’s friends had witnessed this turmoil firsthand. He needed to fabricate a complete story to make it coherent, and he needed to have the team handle the aftermath, in case Zhong Yao and the others were implicated. If Wu Chen decided to lash out and randomly accuse others, once it spread, it would become a stain impossible to wash away.

It… wasn’t over yet.

His head pounded as if it were splitting. Resting against Zhong Yao’s chest, Lin Zhu closed his eyes briefly and forced himself to continue. “Ge, leave this to me. Stay here with your friends later, talk for a bit.”

He lowered his head, voice gentle. “Don’t feel too bad. He’s just scum. Not everyone is like that. There are still good people…”

Zhong Yao looked down at him, his chest aching.

At a moment like this, Lin Zhu was still the one comforting him.

He didn’t dare think too deeply about how much shadow this incident would cast over Lin Zhu. Zhong Yao placed a hand at the back of his neck and rubbed gently twice. “I still have you… so it doesn’t hurt that much.”

Knowing Lin Zhu could easily sense his emotions, Zhong Yao avoided eye contact and simply smiled, ruffling his hair. “It’s not that bad. Really.”

Lin Zhu had clearly been jolted awake from sleep and had been on edge ever since. He couldn’t afford to expend more mental energy. Zhong Yao lowered his arm and took Lin Zhu’s hand that hung at his side. “Leave the rest to me. Go rest for a while. If you’re worried, stay with me…”

His movement suddenly paused. He lifted Lin Zhu’s hand, brows tightening sharply. “How did this happen?! Does it hurt?”

The wound on Lin Zhu’s palm had never been treated. By now it had turned pale from being soaked in cold sweat. At the question, he looked up blankly and instinctively shook his head.

He was still thinking about what had just happened and tried to speak again, but Zhong Yao’s expression had completely darkened.

Turning back to the others, Zhong Yao said, “When the police arrive, everyone will get a blood test. We will preserve the evidence, and get a printed report from the hospital.”

He rarely spoke in such a tone. A few who hadn’t fully grasped the situation instinctively wanted to object, but the low pressure surrounding him made them fall silent.

Worried about frightening Lin Zhu, Zhong Yao turned back, his voice softening as he explained quietly, “In case someone digs this up later to smear us… This isn’t something you can avoid just by wanting to. If, down the line… it can’t be cleared.”

This incident would forever be a potential time bomb. If someone dug it up in the future, they had all been only one step away from that substance. If someone with ulterior motives refused to let it go, suspicion would cling to them regardless.

If rumors later claimed that one of them had accidentally developed an addiction that night, even as victims, no amount of explanations would suffice.

Things the industry didn’t want exposed weren’t easily publicized. No matter how big tonight’s disturbance was, it could be suppressed. Resolving it cleanly now was better than burying a landmine that would one day explode, leaving them defenseless and unable to clear their names.

“Zhong Yao.”

The leading middle-aged actor looked grim as well, rubbing his brow as he stepped forward. “What happened tonight is too… If we’d known earlier, we never would’ve asked you to come. You—”

Zhong Yao couldn’t bear to hear that. He gave a faint, hoarse laugh and gently interrupted, “It’s fine.”

Zhong Yao had more experience with this sort of thing than anyone else, and he’d thought further ahead than Lin Zhu. He told the planning manager to hurry and get a first-aid kit from the club, while continuing to brief the others.

“We have a few connections in the industry, so we can get a bit more information. If there are any new developments, we’ll let you know right away…”

The planning manager came running back with the medical kit. Zhong Yao took it, opened his mouth to say something, but the sight of the wound in Lin Zhu’s palm stabbed at him so sharply it felt as though his insides were twisting in pain.

“I’ve got something to deal with… Call me when it’s time for the blood test.”

He led Lin Zhu into the lounge and locked the door behind them.

It wasn’t until Zhong Yao carried him over and set him down on the sofa that Lin Zhu finally came back to himself. Watching Zhong Yao hold an alcohol-soaked cotton ball over his wound, gathering his nerve to clean it, Lin Zhu spoke softly and guiltily.

“Ge…”

Zhong Yao closed his eyes. His hand trembled slightly.

Even after learning he had almost taken a laced cigarette, even after finding out that an old friend had turned around and stabbed him in the back for the sake of an opportunity, even after seeing once-trusted friends avoiding each other’s eyes and stopping short of speaking. His chest hadn’t hurt like this.

He couldn’t bring himself to touch the wound. Half-crouched by the sofa, he simply held the tweezers with the alcohol cotton, steeling himself.

Lin Zhu grew uneasy seeing him like that and forced himself to speak. “Ge, don’t… don’t squat…”

A little frightened, he blurted out whatever came to mind. “Later… when the police come to draw blood, if your legs are numb and you can’t stand up, that’ll just make you mo—more suspicious…”

“…”

Zhong Yao was so exasperated he almost laughed. He rubbed his temple, stood up, and sat on the armrest of the sofa, carefully cleaning around the wound.

When Lin Zhu had lost control earlier, he hadn’t held back. His palm was already a mess of torn flesh and blood. Zhong Yao couldn’t bear to touch the wound directly. His movements were cautious to the extreme.

Suddenly, noise erupted outside.

Guessing the police had arrived, Lin Zhu instinctively tried to stand up despite knowing the planning manager and the others were handling things. Zhong Yao caught his wrist and pulled him back.

“Ge—”

Lin Zhu abruptly fell silent.

The little color Zhong Yao had just coaxed back into his face drained away again. At a loss, he spoke in a faint voice. “Ge, d—don’t be angry. I… I’ll do whatever you tell me. I’ll listen.”

Zhong Yao still held his wrist. “You’ll listen?”

Lin Zhu’s palm was icy. His mind was blank; he only knew to nod. “I’ll listen. Don’t be angry… It’s bad for your health. Don’t be angry. If you’re angry, just hit me…”

Zhong Yao let out a soft breath, sat down on the sofa, and gently drew him into his arms.

He pressed his lips together and set aside the used cotton ball.

Closing his eyes, he said, “Kiss me.”

“?!”

Consumed by guilt over Zhong Yao nearly being framed because of his own oversight, Lin Zhu had already been prepared to resign to take responsibility. He couldn’t even process what he’d just heard.

“Kiss—what?”

“…Mouth?” Zhong Yao said uncertainly.

It took Lin Zhu a moment to understand. His face flushed bright red, and he grew even more flustered. “H-how can it be at a time like this? Can’t we wait until we get home—”

The word home stabbed sharply at him. His head throbbed, feeling dizzy. He avoided Zhong Yao’s gaze and stammered, “P-punish me some other way. I made a mistake. You can’t punish me like this…”

Zhong Yao’s heart softened painfully. He opened his eyes and ruffled Lin Zhu’s hair. “You know you were wrong?”

Lin Zhu didn’t dare look at him. His eyes burned. “I know…”

Zhong Yao’s voice became gentler. “Will you do it again?”

Lin Zhu froze.

Wasn’t Zhong Yao angry because he’d nearly been put in danger, betrayed by an old friend, and because Lin Zhu had been careless and almost missed such important information?

A mistake like that… could there even be a next time?

His head pounded; his thoughts were muddled. He shook his head on instinct. “No…”

All Zhong Yao wanted was for him to remember not to hurt himself so recklessly again. Relieved, he pulled him closer, his voice even softer.

“If you know you were wrong and change, that’s a good thing, right? Shouldn’t that earn praise?”

Lin Zhu was completely confused. He didn’t dare nod or shake his head, just stood there blankly in Zhong Yao’s arms.

Zhong Yao sighed and spelled it out helplessly. “If it’s praise… can you kiss me now?”

The agent was in far too fragile a state. Zhong Yao was deeply worried. Not giving him time to overthink, he drew him closer and lowered his head to press his lips to Lin Zhu’s pale, cold ones.

Lin Zhu trembled violently at the warmth, his eyes instantly reddening.

Zhong Yao’s own eyes burned as well. He kissed him gently and tightened his arms around him. “It hurts me to see you like this…”

He stroked down his back again and again, took a deep breath, and pulled back slightly. “I’ve already been through something once. If it happens again, what’s there to fear? How did you work yourself up like this? I don’t even have the heart to feel upset anymore…”

Lin Zhu began to tremble faintly. He looked up at him, breathing fast, and opened his mouth. But, he couldn’t say a word.

Zhong Yao didn’t make him speak. He lowered his head again to kiss him properly. But Lin Zhu suddenly lunged forward, wrapping his arms around him and trembling as he tilted his head up to kiss him back.

Buried in his arms, clutching his clothes tightly, his cold lips quivering against Zhong Yao’s, Lin Zhu finally burst into tears.

---

Outside the door, several people were still pushing one another, arguing over who should go in to call Zhong Yao out for the blood draw.

“Why should I go? Didn’t you see how fierce his agent is?!”

The younger actor had gone pale with fright, afraid of getting kicked out like before. “For all we know, he’s beating Zhong Yao up behind that locked door!”

Another nodded solemnly. “Maybe Zhong Yao didn’t even tell him this time and snuck out on his own. Then the information didn’t match up, and that’s why he rushed over in such a panic… It’s so quiet inside. He’s probably scolding Zhong Yao so badly he doesn’t dare talk.”

The third man tried to hide behind the others and added, “Making him write a self-criticism too. No more coming out drinking with us…”

“You lot—”

The middle-aged actor at the front was exasperated. He sighed heavily and shoved through the crowd. “Forget it, I’ll go. All of you disperse and stop crowding the door…”

The ship of friendship capsized instantly. The rest scattered to the corner of the corridor, peeking cautiously.

Today’s incident wasn’t Zhong Yao’s fault anyway. Gritting his teeth, the middle-aged actor braced himself to go in and mediate. He raised his hand and pushed open the door.