Ye Zhou had a good temper, but he was very firm when it came to matters of principles.
No matter how much the actress apologized, Ye Zhou didn’t give her a second chance. Instead, the female extra he randomly pointed out earlier quickly got into character after applying makeup.
Although she made a few mistakes, at least there was progress every time, and she was taking the acting seriously.
Don’t accuse Ye Zhou of being cold-blooded. Sometimes that’s just how it is. Unless you can guarantee that your value is irreplaceable, you don’t have the right to be capricious or make mistakes. There are too many people in the acting industry; every year, many dream-chasing people come to the nearby film city to be extras. If you’re not up for it, there are plenty of replacements.
Moreover, that actress’s role wasn’t that difficult, and her previous scenes weren’t that many. It wouldn’t be much trouble to replace her, and it would be easy for Ye Zhou to find a substitute. It didn’t matter to him who replaced her.
After 9 PM, the shooting that was originally scheduled to finish around 6 PM was finally completed. Although the overtime was caused by the actress’s mistake, Ye Zhou still generously compensated everyone.
After settling the crew’s matters, Ye Zhou looked at Zhu Ning and Jiang Tingyuan apologetically, “Sorry for making you wait so long. I thought it would be over quickly.”
The time of these two was always very valuable. Zhu Ning’s current net worth had soared to a terrifying level, and as for Mr. Jiang, money could hardly buy his time.
Zhu Ning didn’t mind at all. He waved his hand and said in a slightly sullen voice, “No problem. I’ll be joining the crew in a couple of days anyway, so I might as well learn in advance.”
“But, Ye-ge, you seemed… a bit cruel just now. It reminded me of the terror of being under your command when we were filming ‘A Farce.'”
Ye Zhou burst out laughing and pretended to clench his fists ferociously, “Really? In a couple of days, you’ll get to experience that familiar feeling again.”
Zhu Ning cowered in fear, thinking of his terrible acting skills. He couldn’t help but worry deeply about the upcoming filming days, unsure if he could make it out of Brother Ye’s crew unscathed.
Jiang Tingyuan didn’t mind at all. He reached out and gently ruffled Ye Zhou’s hair, then put a thin jacket he had prepared on him. “It rained all day today, and the night temperature is low. Don’t catch a cold.”
Ye Zhou obediently put on the jacket with Mr. Jiang’s help. After wearing it, he suddenly realized an issue and looked at Jiang with a puzzled expression, “Eh, this jacket doesn’t seem to be mine?”
He clearly remembered packing up all his belongings before leaving, and the jacket Mr. Jiang brought was obviously not his, nor did it seem to match the original person’s style. However, the size fit him perfectly, not too big or too small.
Jiang Tingyuan tilted his head and calmly said, “I bought it.”
Ye Zhou: “For me?”
Mr. Jiang admitted openly, “Of course.”
Meeting his frank gaze, Ye Zhou inexplicably felt his face heating up. He blinked rapidly and rubbed his face vigorously, trying to physically cool himself down.
“Let’s go, let’s eat!” Ye Zhou pulled Mr. Jiang’s arm and walked quickly with his head down.
After a few steps, he remembered he seemed to have forgotten something. He turned his head and met Zhu Ning’s confused expression. He cleared his throat awkwardly and gestured, “Xiao Zhu, let’s go!”
After confirming that Ye Zhou and Zhu Ning were genuine friends, Zhu Ning’s manager, Sister Meng, felt reassured leaving him here. With the current smear campaign attempting to control public opinion and slander Zhu Ning, Sister Meng naturally couldn’t stand by and watch her artist get defamed, keeping herself busy every day.
If it weren’t for wanting to see this Ye Zhou that Zhu Ning spoke of and determine if he was a friend or foe, Sister Meng might not have taken the time to come today.
Since it was a private gathering, Zhu Ning had his assistant go home and rest.
The restaurant was originally booked at a well-known private restaurant in City A, but on the way there, Ye Zhou got distracted by a roadside barbecue stall, unable to take his eyes off it. Even after the car had driven far away, he kept craning his neck back, the longing in his eyes about to spill over.
“Want to eat?” Jiang Tingyuan asked.
Ye Zhou was still immersed in the aroma of the barbecue stall and couldn’t tear his gaze away. Without thinking, he nodded, “Yes!”
A flicker of amusement flashed in Jiang Tingyuan’s eyes. Seeing Ye Zhou’s genuine desire, he told the driver, “Turn back.”
Most people have tried roadside barbecue stalls, but not Mr. Jiang. His diet was so regulated that every meal was carefully planned by a nutritionist according to nutrition ratios. Given his status, he had heard of roadside barbecue stalls but never eaten from one, so it was quite novel for him.
Ye Zhou watched as the car got closer and closer to the barbecue stall, finally coming to his senses. He looked at Mr. Jiang in disbelief, “Really, we can?”
Without waiting for Jiang Tingyuan’s reply, Ye Zhou shook his head, “Never mind, let’s just eat Cantonese cuisine. Roadside stalls are delicious, but the hygiene can’t be guaranteed. Let’s not eat it.”
“I was just looking, I don’t really want to eat it.”
Although he said that, Jiang Tingyuan understood that he actually did want to eat it but was just saying that out of consideration for him.
“Besides, you and Xiao Zhu are so famous, it wouldn’t be good if you were recognized.” Ye Zhou mumbled, successfully suppressing his desire to eat barbecue.
However, at this moment, Zhu Ning, who had been silent, enthusiastically chimed in, “Let’s eat it! Let’s eat barbecue, Ye-ge! I haven’t had it for so long either. We can find an inconspicuous corner later, it’ll be fine!”
So, that night, the three of them ended up eating barbecue after all.
Fortunately, Zhu Ning wasn’t recognized, and there were no news reports the next day.
Unfortunately, the words Ye Zhou said before deciding to eat barbecue came true.
Perhaps the hygiene at the barbecue stall was indeed an issue, or maybe the barbecue flavors were too heavy. Ye Zhou and Zhu Ning had eaten such things before, so their bodies likely had some immunity, and they didn’t have any problems. But Mr. Jiang was different.
After parting ways with Zhu Ning, just as they were on their way back to Ye Zhou’s apartment, Mr. Jiang’s complexion started looking off.
At first, in the dim car, Ye Zhou didn’t notice. But when they reached the apartment building, and Ye Zhou got out to bid farewell under the streetlight, he saw Mr. Jiang’s forehead was covered in a fine sheen of cold sweat, and his face was alarmingly pale.
Ye Zhou was dumbfounded, his voice panicked as he asked urgently, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Stomachache?”
Jiang Tingyuan shook his head, his voice lacking its usual deep steadiness and clearly sounding weak. “It’s nothing.”
“You go up, I’ll leave once I see the lights on in your apartment,” Jiang Tingyuan said with difficulty.
Mr. Jiang was already in such a state, so there was no way Ye Zhou could just leave him and go home on his own. He directly opened the car door and got back in, sitting close to Jiang Tingyuan so he could lean against him without exerting so much effort.
“Rest for a bit if you’re feeling unwell. I’ll take you to the hospital right now.” Ye Zhou told the driver in front, “Take us to the nearest hospital.”
The driver nodded and started driving towards the hospital.
However, at this moment, Jiang Tingyuan lightly gripped Ye Zhou’s hand and said softly, “Let’s not go to the hospital.”
Perhaps due to the stomach pain, although Mr. Jiang’s words sounded serious, Ye Zhou somehow detected a hint of coquettishness.
He shook his head, brushing off those random thoughts, and firmly insisted, “No, we must go to the hospital.”
Jiang Tingyuan didn’t speak, and his palm had also become damp with a thin layer of cold sweat from the pain, dampening Ye Zhou’s dry hand.
Ye Zhou gripped his hand tightly in return. Although he knew it essentially wouldn’t help, he still did it, as if he could transfer his strength to Jiang Tingyuan and help alleviate his pain.
He lowered his voice and coaxed, “Let the doctor examine you at the hospital and prescribe some medicine, and the pain will go away. If it’s not a big issue, you can go home quickly. I’ll stay with you, don’t be afraid.”
Jiang Tingyuan closed his eyes, lightly scratching Ye Zhou’s palm as he said slowly, “Go home and call Meng Yifan.”
Reminded by him, Ye Zhou then remembered that Mr. Jiang had a family doctor at home. However, this was regarding his stomach, and Jiang Tingyuan had a history of stomach issues, so they still needed to go to the hospital for an examination to know if there was a problem.
“The hospital has more comprehensive facilities. Since we’re going, let’s get a thorough check-up, okay?” Ye Zhou weighed the options and coaxed Mr. Jiang in a tone used for children.
Jiang Tingyuan disliked going to hospitals and had an innate aversion to them, so he usually relied on private doctors.
But seeing Ye Zhou’s insistence this time, Jiang Tingyuan didn’t say anything further. He lightly nodded and closed his eyes, leaning his head on Ye Zhou’s shoulder.
As Ye Zhou wished, they went to the hospital. Since it was late at night, the emergency room wasn’t as crowded as during the day, with only a few relatives and patients waiting in the resting area for results.
Ye Zhou registered with his own name and got Mr. Jiang a number. After a series of tests dragging until past 3 AM, they fortunately found it was just a recurrence of regular gastritis, manageable with medication and nothing serious.
Only then did Ye Zhou’s anxious heart finally settle. After confirming with the doctor that hospitalization wasn’t needed, he sent Mr. Jiang home and heated some water for him to take medicine.
Originally planning to leave, Ye Zhou looked around the empty house with no one else besides the two of them. If he left too, there would be no one to care for Mr. Jiang in case anything else happened.
Moreover, Jiang Tingyuan had been holding Ye Zhou’s hand the entire time, not letting go even when closing his eyes to fall asleep. Ye Zhou tried pulling away, but seeing his furrowed brow, he gave up.
Worried something might happen overnight, Ye Zhou hesitated but decided to stay for the night.
He thought everything would be fine, but who would have expected Mr. Jiang to develop a fever in the middle of the night? Ye Zhou was dozing off next to him when he felt a warmth on his hand and immediately woke up.
He grabbed the thermometer from the medicine box and checked – a low-grade fever of 37.8°C.
Ye Zhou was scared out of his wits. He did not get this anxious even when he was sick himself. He fumbled as he called the family doctor and rummaged through the medicine box for a while before finally finding some fever-reducing patches.
He used a damp towel to wipe Mr. Jiang’s body and stuck the patch on his forehead.
After the family doctor arrived, he fed Mr. Jiang some anti-inflammatory medication. Around 5 AM, the fever finally subsided, and his temperature returned to normal.
Ye Zhou stayed up all night, his eyes red from fatigue. But even after the fever went down, he dared not sleep, afraid something else might happen to Mr. Jiang that he wouldn’t notice right away if he dozed off.
When Jiang Tingyuan woke up in the morning, he saw Ye Zhou had pulled up a chair and fallen asleep by the bedside, his chin propped on one hand against the headboard.
Hearing the movement, Ye Zhou immediately woke with a start, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”
Seeing the clearly exhausted yet still alert Ye Zhou, Jiang Tingyuan didn’t know how to describe his current feelings. He remained silent for a moment, then sat up, placed his hands on Ye Zhou’s shoulders, and rested his forehead against Ye Zhou’s. After a few seconds, he tilted his head up slightly and planted a scorching kiss on Ye Zhou’s brow.
With a soft sigh, he murmured, “Sleep.”
“Good night.”
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