The Perfect Relationship

Chapter 95: Habitual Dependence

With Shao Junling's abilities, taking the TOEFL exam was a piece of cake. Yin Chang wasn't worried about the exam results, but Shao Junling wouldn't give him a clear answer, leaving him hanging in uncertainty.

Regardless of whether Shao Junling would go abroad or not, Yin Chang was determined to play the role of Cao Pi.

The lines in the costume drama were extremely difficult to recite. After practicing, Yin Chang's head was pounding. Later, he realized that he had no foundation in classical Chinese and had taken on a role with such a large script. It was like digging his own grave.

In addition to memorizing lines, Yin Chang also had to learn about ancient Chinese culture, such as proper sitting posture, walking style, and the body language of daily greetings. Although there were professionals and directors on set to guide them, he still had to do some homework in advance.

Therefore, with immense pressure, Yin Chang could only start preparing as soon as possible, and he had less time available than before.

Two months passed like this, and one day, Yin Chang returned home very late and saw Shao Junling sitting on the bed with his laptop.

"You haven't slept yet?" Yin Chang took off his windbreaker and hung it on the coat rack. The weather had turned warm recently, and he had been shooting outside all day, sweating profusely. He quickly took a shower and came out to see Shao Junling still sitting in the center of the bed. "What's wrong? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Brother," Shao Junling looked at him and whispered, "I received an acceptance letter from L University."

Yin Chang was stunned. Didn't Shao Junling receive the conditional acceptance letter six months ago?

Oh, wait, that was a conditional letter. Could he have received the official acceptance now?

Shao Junling confirmed Yin Chang's guess with his next words: "I start in August this year."

Yin Chang's eyes lit up, but he soon became downcast.

He had heard the answer he wanted, but he couldn't be happy. Because Shao Junling's delay had worn down Yin Chang's initial impulse, coupled with the fact that the recent script of the costume drama had been tormenting him, Yin Chang thought over and over again that the deal seemed a little unfair.

However, Yin Chang's rationality quickly overcame his emotions. He pretended to be excited, As expected, you're amazing.... when are you leaving? Should I book your flight for you?"

He lifted the blanket and got into bed, but his brain was quickly thinking: Shao Junling would be leaving in less than three months. That was too soon...

"How much is the tuition? When do you have to pay it? Do you not have a VISA yet? You should ask Uncle Wang to help you get one when you have time. I will transfer money to your card every year…" Yin Chang remembered that when he was studying at Pasadena High School, Yin Dong would deposit seventy to eighty thousand dollars into his account each year, which was about five hundred thousand RMB. Yin Chang wasn't extravagant, but he didn't skimp on spending either. It had been many years since then, and prices had gone up. Shao Junling would be studying at a prestigious university and would come into contact with famous people from all walks of life. He couldn't be shy about not having enough money.

"Is $200,000 a year enough?" Yin Chang asked, considering the costs. "Do you want to buy a car? You can drive at the age of seventeen in America."

Shao Junling: "..."

When Yin Chang studied in Pasadena, he had a car. He didn't have time to sell it before returning to China, and it had been sitting in the garage all these years. He didn't know if it had become junk.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Yin Chang suddenly remembered something. "Which city is L University in? Is it San Francisco?"

Shao Junling closed his laptop and placed it on the bedside table, calling out, "Brother."

Yin Chang: "Isn't that close to Los Angeles? You can come to Pasadena and take a look. There's a villa there that I used to live in..."

Shao Junling: "Brother..."

Yin Chang: "But it hasn't been lived in for many years. Why don't you take Fiona with you? You can visit every weekend, and she can cook for you... Or you could rent a house in San Francisco..."

"Brother!" Shao Junling raised his voice, silencing Yin Chang.

"Don't you trust me to take care of myself?"

Yin Chang: "Uh, yeah..."

Shao Junling looked at him speechlessly. "Why don't you come with me if you're so worried?"

Yin Chang blinked. "...I have to work."

Shao Junling paused for two seconds, "You don't have to worry about me so much. I can handle it myself."

This sentence blocked all of Yin Chang's concern, and he suddenly felt very despondent.

Although he had been back in China for many years, he had lived in America for more than ten years and had a lot of experience to share with his younger brother. However, his brother didn't seem to need it...

Come to think of it, his younger brother could repair VCRs and projectors and spoke English fluently. If he wasn't lacking money, was there anything he couldn't handle?

At this moment, Shao Junling seemed to have seen through Yin Chang's thoughts, "It's late. You should sleep. I have three months of vacation before going abroad. You can take your time to tell me anything you need to."

Yin Chang originally wanted to offer help, but when Shao Junling said "tell me," their roles seemed to have reversed.

Yin Chang smiled bitterly, "Okay..."

Ah, he had to adapt to this process sooner or later.

He didn't sleep well all night. When he woke up in the morning with sore eyes, he saw that Shao Junling was still lying beside him with his eyes closed.

Shao Junling usually went for a morning run and then went to school at this time. Why was he still lying down today?

Oh, he almost forgot, this guy was on vacation now, probably not in a hurry to go to school.

Taking advantage of Shao Junling still sleeping, Yin Chang quietly reached out and rubbed his head.

Oh, the hair was so stiff, not as soft as when he was a child...

After Yin Chang got out of bed, Shao Junling opened his eyes. Watching his brother's back as he left, he let out a sigh, feeling a bit melancholy.

After a few days, Yin Chang asked Lu Lingjuan, "Can you check my schedule before August? How many days off do I have?"

Lu Lingjuan flipped through the calendar. "You have off in July and August, no plans."

Yin Chang thought he heard wrong. "Hmm?"

"In fact, it's not really a break," Lu Lingjuan explained. "Manager Yao scheduled two-months for you to focus on studying the script and adjusting your mindset before filming for 'The Three Kingdoms of Power Struggle,' starts."

Yin Chang realized that before every filming, there would indeed be a few days of rest. But the projects he accepted before were all very short, so the time never exceeded a week, and sometimes he would just use the time to memorize lines. He initially thought it was the same this time, so he started reading the script early and even asked the teacher for extra lessons on ancient costume dramas. Yao Manhuai and Lu Lingjuan just thought he was diligent, so they didn't think much of it, since Yin Chang had always been serious and dedicated.

Now that he heard he had two months of vacation, Yin Chang felt like he had gotten a big surprise and was overjoyed.

Lu Lingjuan asked again, "You just asked me about your days off. What were you planning to do?"

"Oh, Shao Junling is going to study abroad in August, I want to spend more time with him before he leaves," Yin Chang said without hesitation.

"Studying abroad? Is he transferring to a foreign high school?" Lu Lingjuan asked curiously.

"He's going to university," Yin Chang replied.

"University?" Lu Lingjuan was shocked. "Has time gone by so fast? I feel like he just started high school not too long ago?"

"It’s been two years already," Yin Chang said happily. The day before yesterday, Mr. He called Yin Chang and he took the opportunity to ask about Shao Junling's situation. “I heard from his teacher that he took the national college entrance exam early this year, and passing it means he graduates from high school. So he won’t participate in the domestic college entrance exam.”

"Oh, I thought he had skipped a grade again," Lu Lingjuan counted on her fingers. "How old is he now?"

"He just turned 17 last year," Yin Chang said grinning. "He was still in Grade 1 of primary school when he was 11 years old. Now he’s 17 and studying at university. Isn't that amazing?"

"Amazing..." Lu Lingjuan marveled, and then asked, "But what about when he goes abroad? What will you do?"

"What do you mean, what will I do?" Yin Chang felt that Lu Lingjuan's question was a bit inexplicable.

"You are so dependent on him, can you bear to let him leave?" Lu Lingjuan looked at him.

"Not...where am I dependent on him?" Yin Chang had a face full of question marks.

Gradually, Lu Lingjuan's gaze at Yin Chang changed from surprise to unimpressed. Wow, Yin Chang depended on Shao Junling so much in his personal life but had no self-awareness?

As Yin Chang's life assistant, Lu Lingjuan often went to his home for work and had seen many sides of Yin Chang that others didn't know.

She remembered last year's Mid-Autumn Festival, when she went to his place early to deliver mooncakes given by a cooperation partner, Fiona had just made a pot of lobster bisque, and Yin Chang had invited her to have dinner together.

After the meal, Yin Chang suggested making tea and dividing the box of mooncakes to eat.

The mooncake gift box was made into the shape of a moon palace, and Yin Chang liked it very much but didn't know how to open it. He naturally called Shao Junling over to do it, and Shao Junling asked him, "Do you want to put it back together after opening it?"

Yin Chang said yes, so Shao Junling carefully opened the box in front of them, took out the mooncakes, and then put it back together intact.

Yin Chang held the box and put it on the coffee table, still joking if a rabbit could be raised inside.

Lu Lingjuan still vividly remembered Yin Chang's childish expression...

After making tea and dividing mooncakes to eat, Lu Lingjuan went to help Fiona. Shao Junling followed to get the milk and saw Lu Lingjuan looking for the tea jar, so he said, "He likes the blue jar, um...put a little less, he won't be able to sleep if he drinks too much at night."

Lu Lingjuan was stunned, hearing Fiona laugh beside her. "Yes, Xiaochang drinks tea like a bottomless pit."

Lu Lingjuan was good at observing people's expressions and speech,l. These small details that others might look over, she noticed.

Also, when Yin Chang was at home, he always habitually called Shao Junling - asking him where the car keys were, where the contract was placed. Once when he had a slight cold, he even had to ask if he had taken his cold medicine that day.

Lu Lingjuan was stunned at the time, clearly she was just a life assistant, but after seeing Yin Chang's interaction with Shao Junling like that, she suddenly realized that if Shao Junling were to compete with her for this position, she might be out of a job...

Actually, she knew there were some celebrities who were life idiots, depending on their managers and assistants for everything except work, but she never thought Yin Chang was like this in private. Because Yin Chang appeared very independent outside. But when he was with Shao Junling, he didn't seem to use his brain much.

Later, Lu Lingjuan felt that this might have been caused by Shao Junling spoiling him too much.

Yes, with Shao Junling's great memory, he was like a living memo, answering Yin Chang's every question and request. They spent everyday together, so it was no wonder that Yin Chang became so dependent on him.

Seeing Yin Chang's bewildered expression, Lu Lingjuan couldn't help reminding him, "Do you remember two years ago at our celebration banquet, when you got drunk and insisted that Shao Junling come pick you up?"