Avenge Our Love – The Second Breakup – Part Three, 1 of 2

World Hopping: Avenge Our Love

Translator: translationraven

First Published on Chaleuria

 

Xie Qianchen looked very much at ease, probably because he’d just finished showering. His half-wet hair stuck to the sides of his face, outlining his delicate features. The bathrobe he wore made Shen Yi most conscious. It seemed to him that the slightest touch would send the loose belt slipping to the floor, revealing the unending beauty hidden within.

He really was beautiful, and most seductive — the type of beauty which made Shen Yi want to seize it, to possess it.

Shen Yi was startled by this thought which flashed in his mind. This thought was soon followed by a budding new thought; he might be able to attack Xie Qianchen.

Back in the office, he had only focused on pitting his wits against Xie Qianchen. However, after returning from the meeting, he’d discovered to his surprise that the script was actually a year-end New Year drama prepared by a famous director in the TV field.

Big names, male and female, had also been cast for roles, and even the closing song was by the current most popular singer in the music world.

A drama like this would have great numbers of budding actors and actresses clamouring for roles, be it inconspicuous or not. All the celebrity managers would also be racking their brains to get their talents in the drama.

But Xie Qianchen had not had a newbie under his wing for two years. The ones he had left were mostly just the empty, pretty faces Cao Kun had played with, and had thrown to Xie Qianchen to set out to pasture. Under normal circumstances, these people wouldn’t even have a chance to participate in a casting call.

What was most incredible was that Xie Qianchen had not just gotten one, but had also seemingly got Shen Yi a confirmed role, and it was quite an important supporting role too.

Shen Yi felt that Xie Qianchen’s capabilities were not at all like the rumours floating around. Other than that, Cao Kun was no retard. Why would he have spent so much money on a useless man for so many years?

Shen Yi stood in the doorway. He had only come face-to-face with Xie Qianchen, but many major things were changing rapidly in his mind. However, Song Yucheng could see his plan in one glance.

How amusing. He was here to cuck Cao Kun, and Shen Yi was actually still thinking of attacking him. Too bad for him, though. Shen Yi’s methods were just too immature.

“Change into house slippers and go to the living room.” Song Yucheng told him to come in, and went to the wine cabinet to pour himself a glass of wine. Song Yucheng himself was not a drinker, but Xie Qianchen had the habit of drinking one glass every night. Besides, how was he to sleep if he wasn’t drunk?

Song Yucheng stared at the clear liquid alcohol in the glass, and felt it mocking him.

He took a sip, and said to Shen Yi, “You brought the script, right? Act out a scene for me.”

“What script?” The jump in topic had been too quick, and Shen Yi, who had been trying to get a feel of how he’d attack Xie Qianchen, did not understand what he’d said.

“Tsk. How troublesome.” Song Yucheng saw what was going on, and simply stood to go to the study. The sound of a printer beeping and clicking away came from the study. Song Yucheng walked out of the study five minutes later. “The screen test is in two days. Let me observe your acting.”

“…”

So he had called him over to his place at eight in the evening to show him his acting? Was he playing him for a fool?

Shen Yi looked oddly at Song Yucheng, and did not react for half a beat. He wanted to slap him, but he considered his plans, and started to act out a scene for the screening test rather mechanically.

However, Song Yucheng told him to stop before he’d even uttered a word of the script.

“What was that acting?” Song Yucheng wrinkled his brow. He stood up and walked to stand before Shen Yi.

It was just too horrible. He’d thought that Shen Yi, who’d had professional training, would not be terrible since he had debuted with an online drama and had good feedback from the public. It now looked like this was mostly due to the advantage of his pretty face.

These stiff movements, and exaggerated gaze… Song Yucheng suspected that Shen Yi had had good feedback for his acting skills in that drama because the other main roles had been thrown together for their looks, so Shen Yi’s acting had seemed especially sincere.

That had to be the case. How the heck had he managed to survive in this industry with this rubbish acting skill otherwise?

Song Yucheng had a real migraine now. Unfortunately, the role he had picked for Shen Yi was one where he could not rely on his looks — he must have skill.

Shen Yi wanted to retort, but he abruptly remembered his plan to attack Xie Qianchen, and softened right away. “I’m sorry. It was too sudden, so I couldn’t get the feel of it.”

Shen Yi knew his strengths, and also knew how to act to get the others to lower their guards. Xie Qianchen was indeed Cao Kun’s dog, but he was a normal man too.

“Woah! Milord, Milord! Is he planning on seducing you?” The System exclaimed right at that moment.

Song Yucheng replied lazily, “Too bad, the poison in this flesh is too strong for me to eat. I could consider it if it were Chu Rong or Ludwig.”

“Err…”

Song Yucheng teased the System in his head, but he made no outward reaction. He made the first move, and took the script from Shen Yi’s hand.

Ha! He got hooked! Shen Yi’s heart leapt with joy. In the next second, however, he was suddenly pulled to the sofa.

Was there something wrong with this person? The touch of Xie Qianchen’s gloved hand on his wrist made Shen Yi tremble instinctively. His first thought was: why was Xie Qianchen still wearing gloves in his own home? However, the fragrance of the shower cream on Xie Qianchen’s body soon mesmerised him.

Too close. Shen Yi felt his heart start to beat erratically.

“Start from the first act.” Xie Qianchen’s voice was by his ear. Shen Yi was so nervous he could not breathe.

He’d heard that some people could make others be deeply absorbed, and obsessed with them just with their faces, and he had not believed such a thing. Now, however, looking at Xie Qianchen, Shen Yi felt that this thing he’d heard about made perfect sense.

But Xie Qianchen’s demeanor changed in the next second, and Shen Yi felt his blood run cold in his veins.

Xie Qianchen had obviously not touched him, but he felt that there seemed to be a pair of hands around his throat. That feeling of being suffocated, of cruelty, was instantly turned into fear just looking in his eyes.

Shen Yi’s pupils shrank right away. Song Yucheng chuckled, his laugh deep with evil threat.

“What are you afraid of, Your Highness?” This was the line from the first meeting between the male lead and the crown prince which Shen Yi was playing. Song Yucheng watched Shen Yi like he was looking at an ant with no way of fighting back. He just had to reach out to kill him.

However, there was still respect in his tone. “Look. This landscape here shall be yours one day. This royal court too. You shall be above the people. Shouldn’t you feel happy?”

His gentle voice seemed to entice, to coax a younger one. However, that fear, that hair-raising fear, made Shen Yi feel like he could not breathe.

He was just too terrifying!

Shen Yi was pushed to the edge with just two lines of the script. He felt that the Xie Qianchen now was making him fearful, and… making him want to run away. He could not even say the most basic of lines in the script.

He had heard that people who could act well could instantly draw others into the scene, but what Xie Qianchen was displaying now was much, much scarier than drawing him into a scene. He had no character outfit, and made no movements, but him simply speaking those lines made him so scared that goosebumps were raised on his skin.

No. He was not Xie Qianchun. He was quite obviously the main lead in the script, who was manipulating the entire dynasty in a sacrificial offering to his late noble wife who’d died of persecution.

He was just too scary…

Shen Yi back away instinctively. He abruptly recalled that Xie Qianchen had won the award for best supporting actor though he had only just debuted. Was his acting skill back then immeasurably great too? But how had a person like this come to be in this state now?

He turned this over and over in his head. However, Song Yucheng did not allow him to ponder it further.

Song Yucheng seemed to sense that Shen Yi’s thoughts were elsewhere. He raised the glass in his hand and forcefully fed the remaining alcohol to him.

Xie Qianchen had always had hard liquor, with ice added to it. The alcohol was ice-cold when it entered the mouth, but it was so strong it burned in the belly.

Shen Yi was not a good drinker. The alcohol stimulated his body, sent him trembling, and tears came to his eyes from his violent coughing.

There was no need to put on an act for this. He was the tragic, oppressed crown prince from the opening scene. However, Song Yucheng continued acting out the scene.

“Tsk. The son of the number one beauty has taste too.” He lowered his head to examine Shen Yi. He was already so close that their skin would touch if he moved any closer, but this intimacy leaned much more heavily to humiliation rather than love.

Shen Yi did not dare move. He opened his mouth a few times, but he could not speak the word ‘impudence’ as the script asked. Song Yucheng’s stage aura was just too overwhelming.

And that dominance too, was not just for the script, but from the despair which Song Yucheng had polished to its finest form.

Shen Yi felt that he could not act anymore.

But Song Yucheng had started acting this scene, and he intended to finish it.

 

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