MOGHA Chapter 59

Feeling a slight tingling on his lips, Ye Shanshan moved back a little, his voice muffled, “It hurts.” His voice was sobbing, unconsciously acting coquettishly.

Hearing his voice, Gong Yue released his grip on the upper lip, lightened the pressure, and soothingly sucked on it before exploring Ye Shanshan’s mouth again, brushing over his gums and palate.

The tingling sensation overwhelmed Ye Shanshan, sending shivers down his spine, causing him to let out an unconscious, seductive “Mmm.”

Unable to resist, Gong Yue delved deeper. Ye Shanshan’s mouth fell open, drool spilling from the corners as their lips and tongues intertwined, producing wet, squelching sounds. Feeling a bit dizzy, Ye Shanshan clung tightly to Gong Yue’s shoulders, instinctively afraid of falling.

As he started to lose control, Gong Yue withdrew from Ye Shanshan’s mouth, breaking their kiss to rest his head on Ye Shanshan’s shoulder. The wide neckline exposed one shoulder, which Gong Yue couldn’t resist kissing. “Shanshan.”

“Hmm?” Ye Shanshan felt a little ticklish, shrinking his neck. Hearing Gong Yue call him, he instinctively responded, his voice tinged with a bit of seduction.

Suppressing the rising heat, Gong Yue sat up straight, looking at Ye Shanshan’s slightly reddened eyes, which resembled almond petals after spring rain. He stroked Ye Shanshan’s back, his voice husky and sensual, “Did you enjoy the holiday?”

Ye Shanshan leaned closer to Gong Yue, wiping his mouth and chest with Gong Yue’s clothes, “Yes.”

He then unconsciously licked his slightly sore and itchy upper lip, as if savoring the moment.

Gong Yue awkwardly averted his eyes, pausing his hand on Ye Shanshan’s back before continuing as if nothing had happened.

Although he had decided not to let himself go until he had fully understood the genetic issues, he found himself repeatedly warning himself, yet continuously falling deeper every time he faced Ye Shanshan.

If he were really to die or lose his memory again—no, Gong Yue looked at the dazed person in his arms and softly asked, “Shanshan, if one day, I’m no longer in this world, what will you do?”

Without thinking, Ye Shanshan blurted out, “Then I’ll leave with you.” He clumsily hugged Gong Yue, “You won’t be alone, and don’t leave me alone either.”

“Okay.” Gong Yue touched Ye Shanshan’s hair with his nose, his breath trembling.

***

For the next two days, Ye Shanshan was busy finishing his scenes, coming and going early and late.

“Observer” started filming in early September, and by now, it had been over two months. Since there were few scene changes, the main actors’ performances were on point, and the budget was ample, Director Zhang, despite often taking ten to twenty takes for a single shot, was about to wrap up.

As Ye Shanshan arrived on set, he heard Director Zhang with a megaphone, “Where are the set workers? What’s with the scenery over there? Change it, change it to a new one!” Very bossy.

Seeing Ye Shanshan, the megaphone turned direction, “Where’s the makeup artist? Hurry up, get makeup on Hu Yan, and let’s wrap this up!”

“…”

This was Ye Shanshan’s last scene, also the final scene of the entire movie. After changing clothes, Ye Shanshan walked into the set room.

Director Zhang, rolling the script into a tube, explained to Ye Shanshan, “…just follow these points. This segment is very coherent, so if possible, we’ll do it in one take. Just do your best.”

He patted Ye Shanshan’s shoulder, “Do well, and I’ll treat you to a barbecue.”

Ye Shanshan unconsciously rubbed the corner of his clothes, glanced at the double lying on the ground, nodded, and looked somewhat restrained.

Seeing Ye Shanshan already in character, Director Zhang, who had seen this many times, didn’t say more, signaling the crew to get ready.

“The final scene of ‘Observer’ with Hu Yan.”

Everyone quieted down, watching Ye Shanshan stand for a moment before moving. He took a few steps closer to the lifeless Wu Qian.

The floor was gray, and blood from Wu Qian’s heart flowed to Ye Shanshan’s feet like a spreading red net, slowly enveloping him.

Hu Yan tried to smile but found it wasn’t easy. He looked blankly at the gun in his hand, slowly raising it to use the barrel to lift his mouth into a smile.

Taking a deep breath, his back slightly bent, he seemed about to collapse. Looking again at the blood, the glaring color made him close his eyes, hiding his confusion, pain, and hatred. A vein on his neck bulged as if all emotions were at their limit.

Director Zhang, watching the close-up, was almost in awe of the bulging vein detail, whispering to the assistant director, “This kid’s acting is incredible.”

In the frame, Hu Yan turned like a puppet with cut strings, slowly picking up a violin case by the sofa. His hands trembled so much it took three tries to open it.

Carefully taking out the violin—his mother’s relic he always carried—he caressed the violin, silently calling “Mom.”

Standing straight, he placed the violin on his shoulder, holding the bow, turning his back to the corpses of Wu Qian and Jiang Rui, playing a segment of “Requiem.” The music swirled through the castle, his lowered eyes and dark lashes hiding his intense emotions.

After finishing, he carefully placed the bow on the ground, picked up the gun, and pointed it at his heart.

At this moment, his expression was almost serene, as if freed from all shackles, a faint smile tugging at his lips, capturing everyone’s attention.

After pulling the trigger, Hu Yan fell to the ground with the violin. The strings trembled, producing a mournful sound.

The camera rose, capturing a bird’s-eye view. Director Zhang watched, amazed by Hu Yan’s fetal position, clutching the well-preserved violin, as blood pooled and spread around him.

Seeing this scene, Director Zhang felt a heavy weight on his chest, and it took him a while to regain his composure before raising his voice, “That’s a wrap for Hu Yan!”

The crew members, who had been moved by Ye Shanshan’s emotions, snapped back to reality and began clapping, “Congratulations on wrapping up!” “Congratulations!”

It took Ye Shanshan a while to stand up from the floor, still feeling dazed. A deep sense of heaviness pressed on his heart, and he suddenly thought of Gong Youli’s resolute back, the blazing flames on Misthios Island, and the ear-splitting explosion.

It felt as if something in his heart was being pulled by memories, causing a painful ache.

“Shanshan,” Director Zhang walked over and noticed that Ye Shanshan didn’t look well. “Are you alright?”

Ye Shanshan was startled and then nodded, “I’m fine, just remembered some unpleasant things.” He didn’t realize that his voice was very soft, as if he had no strength left to speak.

Trying to smile but failing, Ye Shanshan suddenly pointed outside, somewhat urgently, “I need to make a phone call.”

Director Zhang nodded and watched him leave in a hurry. After some thought, he asked an assistant to keep an eye on Ye Shanshan from a distance, worried that he might not have fully recovered from the intense emotions of his role and could have an accident.

Ye Shanshan went straight to a small cubicle in the resting area, instinctively locking the door. He pulled out his phone and pressed the speed dial button for number one.

He stared blankly at an unknown spot, feeling overwhelmed by these intense emotions he had never experienced before.

After three rings, Gong Yue’s voice came through the phone, “Shanshan.”

After a few seconds of silence without a response, Gong Yue’s voice grew anxious, “Shanshan? What’s wrong?”

Ye Shanshan took several deep breaths before he could speak, “I just finished filming.” His voice was rough compared to usual.

Realizing that Ye Shanshan was not in his normal state, Gong Yue signaled for the meeting to continue without him and stepped outside, softening his tone, “Did something happen?”

At that moment, Ye Shanshan was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, “I just finished filming the last scene.” He struggled to find the right words, “I—”

Closing his eyes, he knew he shouldn’t bring this up and make Gong Yue recall unpleasant memories, but the overwhelming emotions felt like boiling magma beneath the surface.

“Shanshan, tell me,” Gong Yue’s tone carried a hint of command, which surprisingly calmed Ye Shanshan.

“After filming, I remembered that night, the explosion. I called out to her, but she ignored me and didn’t leave with me…”

Ye Shanshan’s fingers kept scratching the floor until his fingertips were scraped raw and bleeding, though he didn’t seem to notice the pain.

“At that time, I just felt a bit sad because I knew I wouldn’t see her again… But just now, it felt like I was back there…” His words were fragmented, but Gong Yue understood.

Ye Shanshan had always been emotionally slow. Even though he could cry and laugh, these emotions were taught by Gong Youli and were not very intense. As Professor Hess had mentioned, when Ye Shanshan played the piano, he couldn’t convey emotions through music, which was why he wanted to act. He wanted to experience the joys and sorrows of different characters, to learn emotions, and to try out different life paths.

Now, he had truly immersed himself in the character’s emotions, experiencing feelings he had never felt before. The sudden rush of negative emotions overwhelmed him.

The incident where Gong Youli sent him away but stayed behind on Misthios Island, leaving no remains, was the deepest shadow in Ye Shanshan’s heart. The character’s emotions brought this shadow to the surface.

Images flashed rapidly in his mind, and Ye Shanshan suddenly spoke again, his voice panicked, “Gong Yue.” It was rare for him to call by name directly, “Don’t leave me alone.”

At that moment, Gong Yue felt his vocal cords tighten, each word from Ye Shanshan piercing his heart like thorns. He finally managed to speak, “Okay, I promise you, I promise.”

—

The call lasted over three hours. When Ye Shanshan finally unlocked the door, he saw Director Zhang standing outside smoking.

“How are you feeling now?”

Director Zhang had been worried after hearing from the assistant that Ye Shanshan locked himself in the room. He had seen this before—a lead actor in his film got so immersed in the role that he developed depression after filming and attempted suicide. Though saved, it took months of psychological treatment to recover.

Ye Shanshan had rebuilt his mental state and regained some energy, smiling at Director Zhang, “I’m okay now, Director Zhang. Sorry for worrying you.”

Director Zhang sighed in relief and nodded, “That’s good. A good actor needs to know how to manage their emotions.”

He didn’t say much more, just gave a reminder, “It was hard work. We might need to shoot a few more scenes later. We’ll contact you. Let’s have a barbecue with Yan Ke sometime, my treat!”

“Alright, call me anytime.”

Director Zhang thought for a moment and then reminded him, “Don’t forget the commercial shoot on the 16th!”

—

Before leaving the set, Ye Shanshan remembered Zheng Dong’s earlier reminder and took a photo with Director Zhang. He then posted it on Weibo, “Wrapped up Hu Yan’s role. Thank you to the ‘Observer’ crew, everyone worked hard!”

Director Zhang also reposted it. After Ye Shanshan left, he curiously opened Weibo and checked the comments on Ye Shanshan’s post. After reading for a while, he burst out laughing,

Showing his phone to the assistant director, he said, “Oh my, Ye Shanshan’s fans are hilarious!”

Under Ye Shanshan’s post, the comments were chaotic.

“—Congratulations on wrapping up! Hoping for great box office success! But can someone kindly send me the cut from the physics conference? With subtitles! I didn’t understand a word! Wait, I did get ‘I’m Ye Shanshan’ at the start. Physics conferences are really tough!!”

“—Kudos to you! Finally, another movie to watch. For those asking, our subbing team is working on it, but the three languages and all those space physics terms are killing us, so progress is slow.”

“—Physics major here, willing to provide free professional consulting to the subbing team, though even I didn’t understand much of what Shanshan said! Confusing!”

“—Seeing your post made me realize, oh right, you’re an actor!! So, I just hope that after half a life in cross-disciplinary fields, you return as an actor.”

“—Hoping that after half a life in research, you come back as a pig-raising expert XD.”

“—Hoping that after half a life on earth, you return as a dewdrop fairy boy.”

“—Hoping that after half a life playing the piano, you come back as a rainbow floating in the blue sky!”

The comments were consistently entertaining, with a whimsical shift in tone.

—

At that moment, Ye Shanshan exited through the back door and saw a familiar Maybach parked by the roadside, covered in fallen leaves, indicating it had been there for a while.

He stood there for a moment, then quickly walked over. Chris opened the car door for him, and Ye Shanshan saw Gong Yue sitting in the back seat, dressed in a dark suit.

Catching Gong Yue’s gaze, Ye Shanshan instinctively smiled, his eyes sparkling like a lake under the moonlight,

“You came.”

Gong Yue had mentioned over the phone that he would come, but Ye Shanshan felt some things he needed to face and overcome on his own, so he didn’t insist. But now, seeing him, he couldn’t suppress his smile.

“Yes, I came.” Gong Yue reached out his hand to Ye Shanshan, his voice warm and firm, “Shanshan, let’s go home together.”

¹TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you and Enjoy reading ❤️”

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  TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you and Enjoy reading ❤️”