CH 55

Chapter 55: “Is he someone you can bully?”

When Yu Nian woke up, his body felt much more relaxed, with only a slight lingering soreness in his muscles. His groggy mind also started to clear up.

Turning his head slightly, Yu Nian blinked his eyes as he momentarily forgot how to blink. Xie You was lying beside his bed, breathing calmly. His uninjured left hand was loosely holding Yu Nian’s hand.

No, it should be his own hand that was holding Xie You’s hand.

His heart suddenly softened, thinking about Xie You’s weakened condition. Yu Nian was worried, so he spoke softly, “Xie You?”

As if it was a conditioned reflex, Xie You responded somewhat unclearly, “Hmm, I’m here.”

Just like he had responded many times before.

Yu Nian suddenly thought that given Xie You’s personality, he probably called out his name in a daze and held his hand without letting go, which was why Xie You ended up lying beside his bed, right?

After a moment, Xie You opened his eyes and met Yu Nian’s gaze. There was a subtle hint of tension in his expression. “You’re awake? Feeling better?”

At that moment, both of them seemed to notice that their hands were still clasped together. They let go simultaneously. Yu Nian’s fingertips unintentionally brushed Xie You’s palm. “Hmm, much better. The fever has gone down.”

Then he noticed that Xie You discreetly and quickly moved his hand behind him while speaking, “That’s good, as long as the fever is gone.”

“Thank you for taking care of me for so long. But you haven’t recovered yet. Do you want to go back to bed and rest for a while?”

The tingling sensation in his palm lingered on the nerve endings, gradually spreading inch by inch toward his heart. Xie You said something and made a move to lie down under the covers, but his gaze remained glued to Yu Nian, unable to let go.

Checking the time, “It’s already half past seven in the morning,” Yu Nian looked up at Xie You and said, “Did you sleep well last night? Do you want to sleep a bit longer and catch up on rest?”

Xie You seemed reluctant to close his eyes. “I’m not sleepy.”

Sensing a hint of grievance from Xie You, Yu Nian smiled and said, “Me neither. I’ve been drowsy these past two days, as if I’ve been sleeping all the time. Now that the fever has gone, surprisingly, I feel quite energetic.”

Xie You furrowed his brows. “How did you get a fever?”

“I took on the role of ambassador for Ning City Museum’s promotional campaign. The clothes I wore for the shoot were thin, and I got cold during the photoshoot. I thought it was nothing serious since I took cold medicine and drank plenty of hot water, but it turns out I still got a fever.” Yu Nian leaned against the pillow on the bed, feeling somewhat embarrassed. “I even told Brother Meng that I definitely wouldn’t catch a cold, but unexpectedly, I ended up with a fever of forty degrees.”

Just as they mentioned Meng Yuan, Meng Yuan called. Without avoiding Xie You, Yu Nian directly answered the call.

Meng Yuan was concerned about Yu Nian’s health. “Has the fever gone down? Are you feeling better?”

“It’s already gone down,” Yu Nian calculated the date and thought of the topic of Meng Yuan’s call. “The museum’s official announcement is today, right?”

Hearing that the fever had gone down, Meng Yuan felt relieved. “That’s good. Rest a bit more. We’ve rearranged the work schedule for you. Your health is the most important thing. After the museum posts on Weibo, remember to repost it as soon as possible, okay?”

Yu Nian agreed, “Sure, Brother Meng, don’t worry. I’ll remember.”

At exactly 8 o’clock, the official Weibo account of the Ning City Museum updated a post, highlighting Yu Nian and photographer Huang Liqing in the first sentence. Soon, both of them reposted the announcement.

[Should I be more excited that Yu Nian has become the ambassador for Ning City Museum or that he’s collaborating with Teacher Huang Liqing? What kind of god-tier combination is this? They were never associated before!! Screaming! Yu Nian is amazing!]

[This picture! It’s explosive! Every shot can be wallpaper! The composition and color scheme is stunning, blending perfectly with Yu Nian’s temperament and the ancient and profound charm of Ning City Museum!]

[Teacher Huang Liqing’s skills are extremely profound. She captured the essence of Ning City Museum’s ancient and solemn ambiance without missing a beat! Looking forward to more work from Teacher Huang!]

[The photos are indeed impressive, but I have a question. I remember there was a news saying that the promotional photos for the Ning City Museum were taken by Ji Chaode. Did Ji Chaode have scheduling issues, so they replaced him with Huang Liqing?]

By noon, the hashtags #YuNianForNingcityMuseum# #HuangLiqing# quickly climbed to the top of the trending list, along with the photos Yu Nian took for Ningcheng Museum, sweeping across the homepage.

On the other side, after seeing the photos released by the Ning City Museum’s official account and the comments praising Yu Nian and Huang Liqing, Ji Chaode slammed his tablet onto the desk, wearing a gloomy expression.

It should have been him enjoying all this praise, not Huang Liqing and Yu Nian!

He recalled the incident at the shooting location when Museum Director Gan Zhou personally came over. He had thought that Gan Zhou would scold Yu Nian for his lack of professionalism, but to his surprise, he witnessed Gan Zhou speaking to Yu Nian in a submissive and flattering manner. Afterward, Gan Zhou replaced him with Huang Liqing!

With a snap, Ji Chaode’s pencil tip broke in his hand.

Meanwhile, Yu Nian was sitting in the backseat of the car, sipping juice and attentively listening to Meng Yuan.

“It’s about the album submission for the EP. I didn’t talk to you about it when you were sick because I didn’t want to bother you. Since you’re feeling better today, I thought I should let you know earlier,” Meng Yuan explained, appearing somewhat helpless. “You should know that whether an album passes the review process has always been a matter of luck, right?”

Securing the cup lid, Yu Nian composed himself. “I know. In my sister’s album, there was a song considered to have promotional, cult, and religious implications, so the entire song was deleted. However, I was very careful when writing the songs for the EP. There shouldn’t be any issues with those, right? Which step is causing the problem?”

“After the album is submitted, it goes through an initial review by an expert. After that, all the albums submitted that month are reviewed together at a monthly meeting of the expert panel. If any expert has objections, the album won’t pass. Nian Nian, you’re stuck at this final step.”

“Has the album been sent back?”

“Not yet,” Meng Yuan’s expression remained indifferent. “That expert’s attitude… is rather vague.”

Yu Nian quickly understood. “They need money?”

“Not only that,” Meng Yuan’s smile turned cold. “That expert’s name is Lin Shunya. He was promoted just two years ago. He’s not interested in money; what he loves the most is obstructing the debut albums of new artists, waiting for you to fawn over him.”

Shi Rou, who had been silently listening, couldn’t help but interject, “Because he’s afraid to bully the popular or established artists, he bullies the newcomers? How can this happen? Can’t you report him?”

“How can we report him? Accepting bribes can be proven, but Lin Shunya just shares a simple meal and drinks a glass of wine, then gives some preaching. Under what pretext can we report him?” Seeing Shi Rou fall silent, Meng Yuan turned to Yu Nian and asked, “Nian Nian, what do you think?”

Yu Nian didn’t feel much about it. He pondered and said, “The album is already at the final stage. If it gets stuck and is not approved, it will be troublesome if the delay is too long.” He comforted Meng Yuan and Shi Rou instead. “In the end, it’s because I’m not powerful enough right now. Once I become popular, he won’t dare to obstruct my reviews anymore.”

In the hospital room.

Due to Ding Zhaoxian’s situation, Qu Xiaoran had been in a great mood these past few days. He was engrossed in playing video games while casually commenting, “Ding Zhaoxian really miscalculated this time. When he woke up from his coma, everything had changed. And he always liked to use the car accident to disgust you repeatedly. It’s about time he experienced it himself!”

Xie You was in a video conference and didn’t respond to his remarks.

Seeing that Xie You was too busy to pay attention to him, Qu Xiaoran simply sat cross-legged on the couch and continued playing games. When Xie You took off his headphones, likely indicating the end of the meeting, Qu Xiaoran glanced at the time and muttered, “Is Yu Nian coming to see you today?”

Xie You had been in a six or seven-hour-long meeting, and his eyes were slightly tired. He gently rubbed his forehead and replied to Qu Xiaoran’s question about Yu Nian, “He said he has a dinner appointment tonight and might not be able to come, so he told me not to wait.”

“Tsk, does he still need to report his schedule?” Qu Xiaoran said, putting down the magazine in his hand and stroking his chin. “But a dinner appointment?” He pondered for a moment, then sat up straight, no longer cross-legged. “Damn, is it that expert’s dinner?”

Pausing his work, Xie You asked, “Which expert’s dinner?”

Qu Xiaoran gave a rough explanation and then said, “In recent years, it’s been said in the industry that it’s an educational dinner. It’s a place where newcomers can learn, but there have been countless instances of seeking favors, being at the mercy of others, and getting treated unfairly. Shit!”

Xie You’s expression turned slightly cold. “Are you sure?”

“About 80 to 90 percent sure. Meng Yuan takes care of Yu Nian as delicately as he does his own child. He definitely wouldn’t take him to some shady dinner. Besides, Yu Nian’s new EP has already been submitted for review, and the approval hasn’t come yet. When I think about it, this dinner is the only possibility.”

As Xie You lifted the covers, preparing to get out of bed, Qu Xiaoran widened his eyes and stood up. “What are you doing?”

Slipping on his slippers, Xie You met Qu Xiaoran’s gaze. “I’m going to find him.”

“Damn it, Xie Xiaoyou, you haven’t fully recovered from your injury. Don’t you understand that? Do you think the blood you lost before was all red paint and tomato juice?”

With a black jacket in his hand, Xie You stood still for two seconds before putting on the coat. In a calm voice, he said, “I can’t stand seeing him being treated unfairly.”

“For f*ck’s sake—” Qu Xiaoran let go of his hand. “Fine, fine. I’ll drive for you!”

In the private room, Yu Nian stood up to pour the wine.

Lin Shunya sat at the table, nearing his fifties, his lean figure accentuated by the harsh and critical lines around his mouth. His fingers, stained yellow from smoke, tapped on the table as he spoke slowly, “Young man, you should focus on doing things steadfastly instead of always thinking about soaring to the sky. Do you really believe that you were born talented and that you can rely on the wind?”

Yu Nian lowered his gaze, his expression unreadable, and did not respond.

Seeing Yu Nian’s silence, Lin Shunya continued, “Yu Nian, I have heard the songs you’ve written, and they are indeed impressive. At such a young age, your talent holds great promise for the future. But let me tell you, I have seen numerous young geniuses meet tragic ends.”

After speaking, Lin Shunya raised his finger, indicating for Yu Nian to drink the wine in his glass.

Just at that moment, the tightly closed door of the private room was suddenly pushed open from outside.

Xie You, wearing a long black coat, entered with a cold aura surrounding him. His uninjured hand held Yu Nian’s pale wrist, partially shielding him while standing in front of him.

With a cold gaze, Xie You’s eyes fell upon Lin Shunya, sitting across from them. His gaze seemed substantial, and his voice contained shards of ice. “Is he someone you can bully?”

Like a rushing torrent, this sentence surged through every fiber of their being. Yu Nian, shielded by Xie You behind him, felt his fingers involuntarily curl up. He looked up at Xie You’s pale profile, his expression frozen for two seconds, and then suddenly, he felt a sense of tranquility wash over him.

He lowered his head, his lips curving up slightly.

In front of Lin Shunya, Xie You raised his hand and emptied the full glass of wine onto the table. He spoke slowly, word by word, “It seems that this position is not suitable for you anymore.”

No longer willing to say anything, Xie You gripped Yu Nian’s wrist again. When he looked at Yu Nian, his gaze softened, and his tone became much gentler. “Come, let’s go.”