Caihong brought a plate of fruits and took a seat beside Xiaosi. "What are you two talking about?"
Xiaosi said, "Chyou is going shopping with Gu Yating."
"Oh?" Caihong also leaned in curiously and asked, "You are interested in him?"
Chyou - "..."
"How come you and Dad are always in sync?"
"That's the power of love."
Even Xiaosi's brow twitched at that. "Yeah, now I know why Chyou is an actress. The drama side is definitely from you."
Caihong dismissed her husband and focused on Chyou again. "So?"
"So nothing, Mom," Chyou heaved a deep sigh and shook her head. "We are good friends. He just wants to appreciate my help for what I did for Uncle Gu."
Her little brother, Xiang, popped a piece of an apple into his mouth. "It's not just that. You were also so diligently washing his coat and ironing it. I saw it with my own eyes."
Xiaosi's ears perked up. "You have his coat?"
Chyou was speechless. She smacked her brother. "Xiang! You dummy! Don't make it sound like I got his coat in any suspicious way. He had wrapped it around me while protecting me from the fire. Thankfully, it wasn't damaged much. So I washed and ironed it and now I will return it to him. That's the least I can do."
The trio bobbed their heads in unison. "Okay."
Xiaosi asked, "So you are really not interested in him?"
Chyou could sense a trace of hopefulness in his voice. She laughed and kissed his cheek. "Not in a dating way. Don't worry. I won't leave my handsome Dad's side ever!"
Xiaosi feigned ignorance. "I am not worried about anything. I was just curious."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I am getting late now, oof. Gotta go. Bye!"
Caihong said after a pause. "Chyou and Yating…They will look good together. Yating is a nice guy too."
Xiaosi nodded. "That's why I told her about him. But I guess it's nothing more than friendship."
"You are the happiest person, Dad," Xiang chuckled.
"Shut up."
Caihong smiled. "Well it's our dear daughter's choice. I just want her to choose a man who will keep her the happiest."
—
Chyou waved her hand as she saw Yating coming. "I am here!"
"Hey," Yating smiled. He observed her expression a bit more and slowly remarked. "You look quite happy today. I mean, you are always cheerful. But today, I can feel an extra zest in it."
Chyou seriously answered. "Well, it's actually about Cheng Yin. I was worried when you had said that you had seen him with a suspicious man that night possibly with drugs. So, I asked him straight away!"
Yating choked. "You did?"
"Yeah. At first, I thought a lot if I should investigate him secretly. But then I thought that I don't want to. It just didn't feel right to me. If I love him and want to spend my life with him, then I don't want to do things behind his back. It was better that I properly ask him."
"And what did he say?"
"He did admit to it."
Yating slightly widened his eyes in surprise. It was indeed out of his expectations that Cheng Yin would come out with it so easily if it was the truth.
Chyou sighed. "It was during his earlier days when he started out acting. You know how difficult it is to make a mark in this industry. He admitted he got in a bit of a bad company during his challenging days. After that, he couldn't completely leave it. But he is not a hopeless addict either. He takes it very few times and that's when you saw him a few months back…"
"I see."
She nodded. "He was very guilty. He knows he should come clean but sometimes, he just couldn't help it during stressful times. Like when a movie gets released. We all worry if it will work well or not. That time too when you saw him, his movie was just released and he was stressed out. If it doesn't work well, the rivals just get a chance to take over and he could lose his position as the best actor. Our positions in this industry are very fickle…" she sadly smiled.
"But! He promised me that he won't take drugs again. That was the last time and last meeting he had with his contact for the supply. I also felt that he was serious about it."
Yating smiled, seeing her eyes shining with joy. "Well I am glad that he confessed and also promised to be clean from now on."
"Yes! Hehe, that's why I am so happy. It feels like a big burden lifted off my shoulders."
"I am sorry…" Yating hesitated. "I didn't mean to stress you out."
"Oh no no. I am glad that I came to know about this. I also understand why he kept it hidden from everybody. It would be the end of his career if it got leaked out. Fans would never be so understanding of his struggle. They want their idols to always be perfect and when something like this happens, they are not so forgiving about it. One moment, they stand with us and then against us the moment something goes wrong."
"Difficult life."
"Very."
Walking and talking upto that point, they reached the store where Yating wanted to buy a gift for her. "It is supposed to be a surprise. Thanks for your company."
Chyou stuck out her tongue.
He chose a simple but elegant pendant for her. "This."
Chyou beamed. "It's so pretty. Damn, your choice is so good. Even better than a woman's. I love it!"
"If you want something else-"
"Nope. This is perfect."
"Great," he gave a wide smile.
He paid for it at the counter and handed the gift bag to her. "Here is your gift which you already know what's inside it."
"Hehe~"
As they stepped out, a young girl approached Chyou and gasped. "I-It's you. You are Zhu Chyou, the actress, right? And…" she eyes Yating and squealed, "is he your boyfriend?"
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