ROBEPTQ chapter 33

Bai Sijun knew that many authors would project themselves into the characters they create. Creating a character required pouring one’s heart and soul into it, so authors often unconsciously infused their own shadows into the characters, sometimes confusing whether the thoughts in the book were the characters’ or their own.

Mei Yuchen wasn’t a rookie author, but it seemed he hadn’t done too well in this aspect.

Mei Yuchen sat silently with a serious expression, and Bai Sijun continued, “You’re a suspense writer, not a romance novelist. The suspenseful atmosphere in this story is completely missing.”

Mei Yuchen’s lips moved, indicating he had something to say, but in the end, he remained silent.

“The one dating the protagonist in the game is the person trapped in the previous game, right?” Bai Sijun speculated expressionlessly. “As long as you deceive the protagonist into the game, he can escape, and then it becomes the protagonist’s turn to deceive the next person.”

Mei Yuchen stayed silent for a while and then replied dryly, “Mmm.”

Being exposed by someone as a suspense writer is as much a failure as a detective writer being guessed at for the murderer.

Bai Sijun sighed, massaging his temples with a headache. “If you like me just to experience the feeling of love and manage to portray the romantic atmosphere in your work, then congratulations, you’ve succeeded.”

Mei Yuchen frowned, “Bai…”

“But I want to remind you,” he interrupted Mei Yuchen, “everything has its limits. Your love experience should end here.”

“This isn’t an experience,” Mei Yuchen seemed dissatisfied with Bai Sijun’s words. He emphasized, looking directly at him, “This isn’t an experience. I can’t control it. If I could, it wouldn’t have been written like this.”

Bai Sijun could discern the meaning behind Mei Yuchen’s words – he genuinely liked him.

His expression was complex, and without responding, Mei Yuchen softened his tone and said, “Bai, don’t you like me too?”

Bai Sijun struggled to suppress the soft feeling in his heart, bit his teeth, and denied, “You’re overthinking it.”

Mei Yuchen called him slightly anxiously, “Bai.”

His tone carried a hint of coquetry and appeal. Bai Sijun forcefully resisted the impulse to hug and comfort him, saying calmly, “It’s getting late. Let’s leave it at this for today.”

Ignoring him in the living room, Bai Sijun walked into the guest bedroom on the first floor without looking back.

He lay in bed without turning on the lights, quietly listening to the sounds from the living room. Perhaps due to the good soundproofing of the room, he didn’t hear any noise.

He didn’t know if Mei Yuchen would be angry with him, but he couldn’t tolerate him turning the new book into that kind of story.

Mei Yuchen wasn’t just his Mei Yuchen; he belonged to all readers.

He could selfishly make him belong to him alone, but in doing so, the grain of white sand under the sunlight would only sink into the sand sea, becoming dim and lifeless.

Mei Yuchen was currently facing a bottleneck, using love as a tool to distract himself in times of boredom. But eventually, he would still feel empty due to the inability to produce new works.

Bai Sijun believed that Mei Yuchen would understand him. Thinking about it, he felt much more relaxed. He fell asleep in a daze, feeling a bit of warmth beside him, but paid it no attention.

He had a dream. In the dream, Mei Yuchen stood on the award podium, surrounded by a sea of fans. Bai Sijun stood in the distance, silently watching him, just like at the annual meeting, observing him shining brightly…

Mei Yuchen returning to the peak was originally a good thing, but Bai Sijun felt uncomfortable in his chest.

He didn’t want to be far away from Mei Yuchen; he wanted to smell the pleasant scent of his laundry detergent…

At this moment, a faint lavender fragrance drifted to his nose. He sniffed it for a while, suddenly opened his eyes, and then saw Mei Yuchen’s face, so close that it was almost within reach.

“When did you come?” Bai Sijun was startled. By now, it was already bright outside, and Mei Yuchen wasn’t sleeping either, just quietly looking at him.

“I came over when I couldn’t sleep,” Mei Yuchen said, hugging Bai Sijun’s waist tightly and burying his furry head in his neck.

Bai Sijun’s neck felt a bit itchy from the hair and breath. He wanted to move a bit to the side, but Mei Yuchen held him tightly, making him unable to move.

“Mei,” Bai Sijun said in a gentle tone, “let go of me first.”

Mei Yuchen didn’t move, saying stubbornly, “No.”

“You…” Bai Sijun was completely exasperated. He reluctantly placed his hands on Mei Yuchen’s waist and asked, “How long do you want to hug me?”

“Until you say you like me,” Mei Yuchen said stubbornly.

Bai Sijun pursed his lips, frowned, and said, “But I don’t like you.”

“You’re lying.” Mei Yuchen raised his head, looking at him, and said, “You called my name several times last night.”

Bai Sijun was suddenly choked and couldn’t speak. He did dream of Mei Yuchen last night, and he vaguely remembered that because he stood in the corner and the Mei Yuchen on stage couldn’t see him, he anxiously called Mei Yuchen’s name, hoping he would see him.

“Why are you lying?” Mei Yuchen approached him, “You clearly like me.”

“So what?” Bai Sijun frowned, turning his face away. “You wrote the book like that, and you still have the leisure to talk about love?”

Mei Yuchen’s movements froze in place, looking at him with a silent, plaintive gaze.

Bai Sijun hardened his heart and continued, “Don’t misunderstand my liking for you. It’s just readers liking the author. If you can’t write a book, I’ll only be disappointed in you.”

After saying this, he glanced nervously at Mei Yuchen. However, those beautiful phoenix eyes turned terrifyingly dark and devoid of any warmth.

“Readers liking the author?” Mei Yuchen asked expressionlessly. “Did you forget how much you enjoyed yourself in my hands that day?”

Bai Sijun hadn’t expected Mei Yuchen to bring up that matter. His ears reddened slightly, and before he could retort, he felt Mei Yuchen’s hand suddenly probing toward his lower abdomen.

“Mei Yuchen!” Bai Sijun tightly gripped his wrist, frowning. “Don’t mess around.”

Mei Yuchen squinted his eyes slightly, as usual not taking Bai Sijun’s words seriously. Four fingers stubbornly ventured into his underwear.

“You!” Bai Sijun firmly held his hand and said threateningly, “If you do this again, I really won’t care about you!”

Suddenly, Mei Yuchen’s hand went limp. Just as Bai Sijun breathed a sigh of relief, he heard him whisper in his ear, “Can’t I make amends?”

“I’ll revise the manuscript.” Mei Yuchen spoke softly. “Just don’t… don’t ignore me.”

Hearing these words, Bai Sijun felt a sharp pain in his heart, as if pricked by a needle. He took a deep breath and sat up, saying, “you do that. My presence here might distract you. I’ll go back for now.”

Mei Yuchen immediately grabbed his wrist in response, his eyes reddening as he pleaded, “Bai, don’t leave…”

“I have a day off next weekend due to the May Day holiday,” Bai Sijun freed his wrist from Mei Yuchen’s grip. “I’ll come find you after work on the last day before the holiday.”

After saying this, he turned and got out of bed, while Mei Yuchen, propping up his upper body, looked at him with a touch of sorrow.

“You’re just a liar.” Mei Yuchen’s voice remained flat. “You lied when you said you don’t like me, and you lied when you said you won’t leave me.”

Bai Sijun clenched his teeth without responding.

Why was being an editor so difficult? Ignoring the author was a problem, being too clingy was also a problem. He really wanted to ignore everything and spend time lazily with Mei Yuchen in this room, but he knew he couldn’t. He had a responsibility to Mei Yuchen as his editor.