After he finished speaking, he looked at Ah Xuan and said, "Xuan, you should also tone it down a bit. He hasn't even done anything yet, and you're already acting like your legs have gone weak."
"Yeah, Xuan, you're so unreserved!" Other students in the audience joined in the teasing.
A-Xuan wasn't annoyed. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow: "What's wrong? Is it so wrong that my junior is so handsome that my legs go weak just looking at him?"
Pei Shaocheng felt somewhat uncomfortable listening to the group of people speaking with such suggestive language.
They're all seasoned seniors, as expected, and they're speaking with increasingly less restraint.
Ah Xuan wiped away the tears of laughter from the corner of his eye and said to Wen Yuhan, "Honey, how about we call it a day for now? Let our junior go back and review the script and get familiar with the character."
Wen Yuhan looked at Pei Shaocheng, asking for his opinion with her eyes.
Pei Shaocheng paused for a moment, then said softly, "I think we should probably give up. I might not be able to handle this role." He nodded slightly to Wen Yuhan, "I'm sorry to have taken up your time."
...
Chapter 13
The scene gradually fell silent as Pei Shaocheng spoke. A-Xuan's lips moved, but he ultimately did not speak to stop him.
After all, this play held great significance for Wen Yuhan and everyone present. They were also hoping that the play would win an award, so as to leave a lasting mark on their years at the drama academy.
Wen Yuhan watched Pei Shaocheng quietly, the cigarette case twirling nimbly between his fingers and swaying gently.
He lowered his head, put the cigarette in his mouth, lit it, took a puff, and then held it between his fingers. He then slowly walked to Pei Shaocheng, tilted his head to exhale the smoke, and looked at him again, saying:
"I'm Han, and you are?"
Pei Shaocheng frowned but didn't say anything.
Wen Yuhan stared at him intently for a moment, then nodded and smiled to himself. He moved the cigarette pack closer to Pei Shaocheng: "Want a cigarette?"
Pei Shaocheng glanced down at the cigarette pack, hesitated for a moment, then reached out and picked up a cigarette, putting it in his mouth. Wen Yuhan narrowed his eyes slightly, sighing half-jokingly, "Tsk, I think I forgot to bring a lighter. You have your own, right?"
Pei Shaocheng paused for a moment, meeting the other person's cunning eyes.
The faint light flickered on the cigarette butt held by Wen Yuhan, sending up plumes of white smoke. Pei Shaocheng's eyes darkened, and the next second, as if possessed, he leaned down and held his own cigarette to Wen Yuhan's.
The flames traveled through the tobacco with each breath, and the air was filled with a faint minty aroma.
A moment of surprise flashed in Wen Yuhan's eyes, then her smile deepened.
Pei Shaocheng straightened up, his expression barely visible, but a clear meaning was in his dark, deep eyes.
He lowered his hand holding the cigarette, his eyes never leaving Wen Yuhan's face. He stared intently at him and spoke in a deep voice, "Andrew."
“Andrew?” Wen Yuhan raised an eyebrow. “I remember the last time I saw you, your name was Pan.”
Everyone held their breath and looked at the two of them.
Pei Shaocheng slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, and after a moment's thought, he spoke again: "I remember now, we met at the theater last week."
"You really know how to downplay the issue, Andrew." Wen Yuhan's eyes flashed with dissatisfaction, and her voice turned cold. "It's obvious, we slept together."
"Huh?!" Everyone present was initially surprised, but then quickly realized that Wen Yuhan was improvising.
They were already used to Wen Yuhan's style of doing things, but they were all eager to see how Pei Shaocheng would deal with such a large amount of information in the dialogue.
Pei Shaocheng looked calmly at Wen Yuhan, feeling the blood surging within him.
Wen Yuhan's tone grew increasingly aggrieved: "When I saw you again, I knew you had forgotten me. I didn't even know your name..."
"Are you feeling unwell? Are you cold?" Pei Shaocheng interrupted.
Wen Yuhan tilted her head: "What did you say?"
Pei Shaocheng approached Wen Yuhan, wrapped his arms around his waist, and pressed them against his own.
"I said, weren't you feeling unwell that night?"
He felt Wen Yuhan's body tremble slightly from his touch.
Pei Shaocheng then continued slowly, "So, who I am isn't really important..." He leaned close to Wen Yuhan's ear, his voice magnetic and seductive, "Are you free tonight?"
There was complete silence. The aura on the stage seemed to emanate from the two of them, stirring the emotions and breaths of everyone present.
Wen Yuhan closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled. Then he laughed at Pei Shaocheng and said, "I say, you're pretty good at this, aren't you!"
Pei Shaocheng's eyes flickered for a moment, his emotions quickly subsided, and his earlobes involuntarily turned red.
"Holy crap, I really fucking cum just now!" Ah Xuan was the first to scream and led the applause.
"Xiao Han, where did you find such a treasure?!"
Amidst the noise and applause, Pei Shaocheng's gaze never left Wen Yuhan. He followed him as he turned and jumped off the stage, watching him sit back down, pick up a pen, and quickly mark and revise the script, hoping for a few words of praise.
As if sensing the other's emotions, Wen Yuhan looked up at Pei Shaocheng, nodded and smiled at him, and continued with her previous lines:
"Are you free tonight? How about I treat you to dinner?"
...
The two were the last to leave the rehearsal hall. The sound of rain intensified instantly as they opened the door.
The air was filled with the smell of earth and decaying leaves, and the sky had already darkened long before sunset.
"What do you want to eat?" Wen Yuhan asked, opening the umbrella that was propped up against the wall. "A new hot pot restaurant just opened in the east gate. Can you handle spicy food?"
Pei Shaocheng nodded.
Wen Yuhan glanced at Pei Shaocheng, whose hands were empty, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Didn't you bring an umbrella?"
"I was in a hurry to leave and forgot."
"Then use this for now." Wen Yuhan moved the umbrella closer to Pei Shaocheng, and when he didn't take it for a while, she chuckled, "Take it, you're so much taller than me, how can you see the road if I hold the umbrella?"
Pei Shaocheng felt a little awkward and silently took the umbrella and held it over their heads.
They stepped into the rain together. Wen Yuhan was looking down at her phone, replying to messages, while Pei Shaocheng followed silently beside her. Seeing that the other's shoulder was wet with rain, he quietly moved the umbrella closer to Wen Yuhan.
"Hanzi...Brother Han! Damn, it's Wen Yuhan!"
Suddenly, a voice called out from behind, and Wen Yuhan stopped and turned around. He saw a man with dreadlocks, wearing flip-flops, and a small mustache walking quickly toward him, carrying a bag of takeout barbecue and beer.
"Where to?" the man with the mustache asked, his words muffled as he smoked a cigarette.
"Let's go eat." Wen Yuhan turned to Pei Shaocheng and introduced, "This is Hu Hao, with a beard. He's my roommate, from the directing class."
After saying that, he turned to Hu Hao and said, "This is Shao..." He paused slightly at this point, then smiled and said, "Andrew, the male lead in my new movie."
"Damn it, where's your conscience, Wen Yuhan? So you still don't remember anyone else's name?!" Hu Hao exposed him mercilessly, then patted Pei Shaocheng on the shoulder and said, "Shaocheng, right? I've known about you for a long time! Back then, a senior sister in charge of special recruitment came back from your place and kept talking about you to me. Oh right, when Hanzi was looking for actors, I was the one who recommended you to him."
"Thank you, senior brother."
Pei Shaocheng politely nodded to Hu Hao, then glanced indifferently at Wen Yuhan beside him. Seeing that he did not refute Hu Hao's words at all, Pei Shaocheng's fingers tightened involuntarily, feeling a surge of irritation and even wanting to turn around and leave.
As a result, he still didn't know who he was.
"Don't take it to heart. That's just how Hanzi is. He can remember everyone in the play, even the most insignificant passerby's name, how many acres of land they own, and how big their kang (heated brick bed) is. But off-screen, he's a complete face-blind! Don't even mention you, you've lived in the same room with us for half a year and you still can't remember all their names. People who know him are used to it." Although Hu Hao's words were accusatory, there was no malice in his tone; in fact, there was a hint of affection.
Wen Yuhan casually grabbed a bottle of beer from Hu Hao, opened it, took a couple of sips, and gestured with his chin: "Want to go eat hot pot together?"
"No, no, I won't disturb your time together." Hu Hao waved his hand, grinning mischievously as he nudged Pei Shaocheng's elbow. "Hey, don't blame me for not warning you, this guy next to you is ruthless, he loves targeting 'male leads' like you... There was this sophomore in the last show, what was his name again? Damn, he was completely bewitched by that bastard Wen Yuhan, and now he comes to our dorm crying all the time when he's drunk! Hey bro, are you straight?"
"Go to hell with your damn beard." Wen Yuhan laughed and cursed as he lit a cigarette, holding it between his fingers. "You've never acted in one of my plays? Why don't you mention that you've slept with me before?"
"Hey, hey, you can't just say things like that!" Hu Hao quickly interrupted, "I'm afraid that second-year junior will stab me with a knife!"
"Get lost!" Wen Yuhan kicked Hu Hao, who laughed and dodged, waving at the two of them, "I'm leaving first, junior brother, come to the dorm to play sometime!"
Seeing Hu Hao's figure disappear into the rain, Wen Yuhan turned to Pei Shaocheng and said, "Let's go."
As he spoke, he took a step forward, only to realize when he felt the rain pouring down on his head that Pei Shaocheng was still standing in the same spot.
Wen Yuhan tilted her head slightly, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
Pei Shaocheng pursed his lips and looked at him expressionlessly.
Wen Yuhan turned back to the umbrella and looked into Pei Shaocheng's eyes.
"Are you angry?" he asked.
“I’ve told you before,” Pei Shaocheng said coldly, enunciating each word clearly. “My name isn’t Pan, nor is it Andrew.”
Wen Yuhan paused for a moment, then chuckled softly, resting her chin on her hand, and shook her head, remarking, "Tsk, she's really angry..."
These words sound as if he is tolerating Pei Shaocheng's unreasonable behavior.
Pei Shaocheng frowned, silently waiting for the person in front of him to finish laughing.
Wen Yuhan nodded and patted Pei Shaocheng on the shoulder: "Sorry, sorry, your name is Pei Shaocheng, right? I'll try not to get it wrong next time." After he finished speaking, he winked at Pei Shaocheng, "So, can we go eat now? I have a bit of a stomachache."
...
Chapter 14
The small hot pot restaurant at the east gate of the drama academy was filled with the rich aroma of red oil. Wen Yuhan ordered a lot of food and sat with Pei Shaocheng at a wooden table in the corner.
Pei Shaocheng barely touched his chopsticks or spoke a word throughout the meal. He silently watched the spicy food-loving guy across from him in the steam, still bothered by what Hu Hao had said earlier.
Pei Shaocheng thought of all sorts of random things, like a lost second-year student or someone who couldn't remember people off-screen, until he suddenly realized that he was paying far too much attention to this person. Then he met Wen Yuhan's interested gaze.
"Are you always this serious?" Wen Yuhan rested her chin on her hand, smiling as she looked at Pei Shaocheng, then deliberately added, "Shao...Cheng?"
Pei Shaocheng tried to avoid his gaze as naturally as possible, picked up the beer can and drank it by himself.
"Or are you still angry with me, Shao Cheng?"
"No."
"Hey Shao Cheng..."
"You don't need to keep calling out."
"Um?"
Pei Shaocheng sighed helplessly: "You don't need to call my name every time you say a sentence."
"Just to reinforce your memory." Wen Yuhan laughed again, using the empty beer can as an ashtray to light another cigarette, and then pushed the cigarette pack to Pei Shaocheng.