Chapter 15: Mystery Man

Yan Yaoxuan suppressed his excitement and deliberately asked: “What tattoo did you wash?”

Everyone knew what tattoo Shen Jintai had on his body. Mrs. Yan was a little unhappy when he saw him fanning the flames, so she interrupted him and asked, “Does it hurt?”

“It’s okay,” Shen Jintai said. After speaking, he glanced at Yan Qiuchi, but Yan Qiuchi didn’t say a word, simply eating his meal in silence. He didn’t seem to appreciate this gesture.

Mrs. Yan felt that the atmosphere was becoming awkward, so she changed the subject and asked about Shen Jintai’s job. “When you start filming I’ll visit you on set. After watching TV for so many years, I’ve been wanting to visit a television set.”

“I want to go too.” Yan Yaoxuan said.

“When the filming of his movie starts, you’ll already back to school abroad.” Yan Qiuchi said coldly.

“I can ask for leave to come back.” Yan Yaoxuan said.

“No. The drama is very long so it’ll take more than half a year to shoot. We won’t be finish by the time winter vacation comes. You can come visit then.” Shen Jintai said.

“Is there a press conference for the launch?” Mrs. Yan asked.

Shen Jintai nodded.

“Then you have to get a good outfit.” Mrs. Yan said: “Whenever you are free, I will take you to pick one out.”

“My agent is already in contact with some relevant brand.” Shen Jintai said: “I’ll just borrow a set when the time comes.”

At any rate, he’s still somewhat a top idol. It shouldn’t be difficult to borrow a suit.

Mrs. Yan: “You have been out of the circle for so long. The brands you can borrow from are limited. If you’re not satisfied with what they loan you, let Auntie treat you. Think of it as a gift for your comeback. We have access to all the VIP brands. I’ll take you there directly.” Mrs. Yan was very proud.

Fashion was also an important factor. It’s normal for celebrities to borrow clothes for events. Whether or not they get to borrow their preferred clothes will ultimately depends on the brand’s intention. When a brand lends out an outfit, it’s to capture the public’s interest. If a small star wanted to borrow an outfit from a big named brand, they would have little say in what’s loaned to them. Often you would see celebrities wearing hideous outfits on the red carpet… It’s not because they have terrible fashion taste, but because it was the only clothes the brand was willing to loan.

Shen Jintai’s wardrobe had all kinds of famous brands. Unfortunately, he had no formal clothing. All of his clothes were too flashy and flamboyant. He was a little bit HOLD* these days.

*Original was like this in English. I’m not sure what it’s referencing to.

The closest thing he had to formal wear was the black suit jacket which was Yan Qiuchi’s.

“Let see what my agent can get me first. If I can’t borrow anything then I’ll take you up on your offer,” Shen Jintai said with a smile.

Yan Qiuchi listened by the side silently. Shen Jintai had deliberately pushed his younger brother to sit next to him. Sima Zhao’s* heart was clearly revealed when he sat down and mention the tattoo washing. This whole thing was all just an act and he deeply sneered in his heart.

*Reference to Sima Zhao. A Chinese idiom involving and inspired by Sima Zhao states that “Everyone on the street knows what’s in Sima Zhao’s mind” meaning that a person’s supposed hidden intention is so well known that it is not really hidden.
*Clarity: He’s saying Shen Jintai’s hidden intention was really obvious.

While sneering, Yan Qiuchi also felt relieved. He liked the feeling that he was able to see through Shen Jintai. Knowing what he was planning, will make it easier to deal with him. While irritable, he also felt solace.

Yan Qiuchi, who hadn’t spoken the entire time, quickly finished his dinner. He stood up and started heading upstairs. Seeing he was leaving, Shen Jintai wiped his mouth and stood up as well: “I’ve finished eating too. I’ll go upstairs first.”

Mrs. Yan knew that he was going to find Yan Qiuchi, and nodded, “Go ahead.”

Yan Yaoxuan also planned to go after Shen Jintai but Mrs. Yan stopped him: “I have something to tell you.”

Yan Yaoxuan glanced at Shen Jintai who had rushed upstairs and sat back in his chair: “That…”

Shen Jintai caught up with Yan Qiuchi, only to realize that he hadn’t called out his name. He was lost on how to address him.

Yan Qiuchi turned around, he stopped on the stairs and looked down.

“Something wrong?” Yan Qiuchi asked.

Shen Jintai nodded and said: “Director Guo told me that you helped me settle the role changes.” He decided to thank him. In his eyes, nothing is more important than acting. “Thank you,” he said with emphasis, his eyes were sincere.

Yan Qiuchi: “I have always distinguished between my public and private life. My prejudices against you will not be brought into work. Director Guo choose you. I believe his vision as a director, but this does not mean that I am optimistic about you.”

Shen Jintai froze for a moment and said, “Then, for that, I also want to thank you*.”

*Clarity: he’s thanking Yan Qiuchi this time for his ability to separate private from public. The previous thank you was for his intervention.

“I don’t know how you got the director to insist on choosing you, but since it’s been decided, I hope you can perform well. This drama is our company’s main investment project this year. Several hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on it. If your performance is still as bad as before, even if it’s finished filming, you will be replaced.” Yan Qiuchi said lightly: “At that time, I also hope you understand that whether it is to support you now or to replace you in the future, I have no selfish intention. You don’t have to thank me now, and don’t hate me in the future*.”

*Clarity: He’s basically saying “It’s not personal, it’s business.” All his actions are for the good of the business, so don’t thank him now because he interceded and if he does get replaced in the future don’t hate him either. Neither decision were influence by personal feelings.

Yan Qiuchi’s voice was nice but cold. While his face was looked heroic and handsome, it always appears stern when looking at others.

Shen Jintai said: “Got it. Like you, work is work, and feelings are feelings. I will not confuse the two. If I don’t perform well, you can change me.”

Yan Qiuchi originally thought that Shen Jintai was still the same. However, at this moment, he felt that he was completely different from before. Shen Jintai’s body seemed to be shrouded in mystery. How did he do it? In such a short period of time, his trick became so profound that it was even able to confuse him.

Yan Qiuchi went back to his room. He was very surprised from Bai Qingquan’s recommendation to Guo Rui’s selection.

He knew about the grudge between Shen Jintai and Bai Qingquan. In the beginning when he had just founded an entertainment company, he invested in a talent show called <Pick Me>. In order to chase him, Shen Jintai signed up to participate. There were many operations behind the scenes of a talent show. Whether a person was suitable for showbiz could be seen at a glance in front of the camera. Shen Jintai was undoubtedly talented, but Bai Qingquan was equally as talented.

Bai Qingquan had a grassroots background. The program team signed him early so naturally they favored him. Though Shen Jintai was talented, he had temperament of a rich young master who couldn’t be disciplined. His true intention for entering the competition wasn’t pure, as it was to chase after men. These factors combined made the program team very reluctant to support him.

Shen Jintai thought that he’d been sleeping with Bai Qingquan, and that their relationship wasn’t simple, thus the grudge* between the two was born. 

*Grudge [Liang Zi] (梁子) was used here. In mandarin/Beijing dialect it means old grudges/hatred.

To suppress Bai Qingquan, Shen Jintai did many things that he couldn’t stand. Having seen enough, as a big boss, he’d of course intervene. However, by doing so, he made the misunderstanding worse and thus their grudge grew bigger.

If the shock level of Bai Qingquan recommending Shen Jintai was one stars, then Guo Rui choosing Shen Jintai to play the second male lead was three stars.

Shen Jintai’s acting… would make one eyes bleed.

He was born unsuitable to be an actor. He was not dedicated to work. He was a rich young master who spent money to enter the entertainment industry to mess around. Thus, the roles he performed were naturally terrible.

However, Guo Rui was not an easy director to compromise. As the leading director of Sunshine Media, he has always had his artistic persistence. Yan Qiuchi still believed in Guo Rui’s choice. Perhaps Shen Jintai was really suitable for this role.

The glass door of the bathroom was covered with a layer of mist. Yan Qiuchi prop one hand on the wall and stood under the shower with his head slightly lowered. The hot water sprinkled on his broad back and flowed down the gully on his back. His tall and sturdy body was stained with hot water. He became a bit flushed as the water droplets flowed down his chiseled chin. Yan Qiuchi suddenly recalled Shen Jintai’s tattoo.

It’s easy to get a tattoo, but it’s difficult to wash it off. His name was on it, which was piercing to his eyes. But now Shen Jintai had washed it multiple times to erase his name. Moreover, because of its’ position, it would have been tricky to wash. The image of that afternoon when Shen Jintai was in his car, unbuttoned his shirt and asked him to touch it appeared in his mind. Considering the position, it would’ve been painful whether it was getting or washing that tattoo.

The shower water suddenly heated up, becoming hotter as if it was going to burn his flesh and blood. He had always suppressed his desires and had firm willpower in that regard. He must remain resolute and not be disturbed by Shen Jintai.

Shen Jintai didn’t take a bath that night. After cleaning up, he laid in bed and read his script. The script had a little problem with the character setting. He originally planned to talk to the screenwriter and the director today, but because Liu Hui was threatening his role, he forgot about it.

The round of readings they’re doing now is to further improve the script. This was the ideal time to propose changes and revisions. However, these opinions couldn’t be mentioned casually. Because everyone had parts in the drama, if someone’s scenes or lines were changed, there would be complaints. 

Shen Jintai sat on the bed and thought about a solution on how to change his character without moving other people’s scenes. While lost in thought, Li Meilan called.

It was a bit noisy on the other end as he could hear Li Meilan’s two kids yelling for milk. Li Meilan took advantage of his retirement to give birth to two children, a son and a daughter. The eldest was close to two while the younger was only eight months old.

“Zheng Siqi and his company issued a statement.” Li Meilan hugged a child and said: “They have denied the romance rumors. Since the crew hasn’t released any official news yet, they haven’t said too much on the matter.”

Shen Jintai: “Well, I’ll take a look.”

Li Meilan: “I thought about it for a while. We’ll also won’t make it clear. Before the press conference, we’d better try to keep a low profile so as not to distract the heat.”

Shen Jintai hung up the phone and went to Weibo to check it out.

Monsoon Entertainment’s statement was very official that you could easily guess what the next sentence would be if you were reading it.

It was the comments that made Shen Jintai a little weary.

The first hot comment: “The Touhua hype failed.”

“Monsoon Entertainment is so stupid. What marketing account is it? If you want to sue it, you can sue Shen Touhua. It’s so obvious he’s the one hyping it.”

“Poor newcomer. Hasn’t even enter the circle yet but already used as a steppingstone.”

“Don’t Touhua likes to step on others to get to the top? Have you forgotten Bai Qingquan, who was stepped on by him and almost couldn’t get up?”

“Shen Jintai hasn’t even clarified after this after the news broke out. At first glance, it’s hype.”

“Am I the only one who believes this is true? Don’t you think that this handsome guy named Zheng Siqi has a temperament and appearance similar the prince of Yan?!”

Shen Jintai was taken aback when he saw this comment.

He clicked on Zheng Siqi’s Weibo to get a closer look. It’s true! They do definitely look alike!

The only difference was the cold temperament between the two. In terms of physical features, the two were almost inseparable. Zheng Siqi was a little more handsome, while Yan Qiuchi was more opulent.

Few people like this comment though. They didn’t really care. They were more focus on the hype of his current love life. But Shen Jintai had dreadful premonition. He felt that this similar coincidence will cause huge waves when the drama is broadcasted in the future.

The author has something to say:

Yan Qiuchi: Author, did you arrange a lot of rivals for me? *pulls nose*

Kinky Thoughts: Thus, the misunderstanding gets deeper…

I’ve read a few reviews before picking up this project where a lot of them mention not liking the ML (main lover), because of how he treats the MC (main character). From what we’ve seen so far, it’s absolutely understandable why Yan Qiuchi would treat Shin Jintai this way. He doesn’t know that it’s a completely different person (after all who would believe that transmigration exist in the real world, ironic as the world they are in is a novel but to them it’s considered a real world). In fact, I find it quite admirable that he’s still able to keep his work and private life separate. Honestly, no one wants a crazy stalker who refused to give up when you don’t return their feelings chasing after them all day long. At least that’s not my cup of tea…

Not everything is black and white. The author is portraying people actions and feelings in a realistic way (including her portrayal of Bai Qingquan). No one is completely innocent here, including the reborn Shen Jintai. He has his selfish motivation through the system reward so his deliberate action to provoke Yan Quichi is not helping much to improve their relations… But that’s what makes the novel good! It’s not all about sunshine and rainbow and justice and goodness. Everyone has selfish desires and it’s okay to have them! Just because they’re not “good” it doesn’t make them “bad” either.

We also have to keep in mind that as readers, we get to see the perspective and thoughts of all the characters. As characters themselves they can only see what’s on the surface through their interactions so they can only act accordingly. It’s much easier to make rational decision and feelings when you have full information.

Anyways that’s just my two cents. Everyone’s entitled to their own critiques and opinions. Would love to hear what you guys think so far about the novel. I won’t be offended even if you have a negative opinion. Just please no fighting or personal insults. We can have a nice cordial debate. Keep it objective to the novel.

Side note: This is what Yan Qiuchi looks like in the manhua:

*Drools~~~~~* No wonder why Shen Jintai couldn’t give up haha.