Yuan Ye was not the type of person who wanted to lie in bed all day. On the first night, Yuan Ye managed to stay put, but the next morning, Fang Shaoyi had to remind him several times not to wander around aimlessly. Yuan Ye readily agreed, but as soon as Fang Shaoyi left, he couldn't resist getting up after only half an hour of lying down.

He just couldn't stay still, and lying down was not his thing. So he pulled over a chair to prop up his feet and spent the whole day reading while leaning against the sofa.

When Fang Shaoyi returned in the afternoon, Yuan Ye had already napped on the couch, but woke up and was hopping out of the bathroom on one leg. Yuan Ye had planned to lie in bed and pretend to be obedient before Fang Shaoyi came back. But before he could even hop back to his bed, the door opened.

Clearly, he didn't have time to carry out his plan. So, Yuan Ye just pounced on Fang Shaoyi and clung to him like a boneless creature, saying, "My foot hurts, carry me on your back."

"Why did you walk around if your foot hurts?" Fang Shaoyi knew that Yuan Ye was impossible to keep still and didn't expect anything different.

Yuan Ye laughed and said, "But I need to pee. How can I do that if I don't get up?"

As he spoke, he hopped on one leg and went behind Fang Shaoyi, wrapped his arm around his neck, and said, "Carry me."

"Okay," said Fang Shaoyi as he lifted him up and placed him on the bed, pointing to his feet.

Yuan Ye obediently lifted his feet and rested them on the edge of the bed, looking up at Fang Shaoyi. "Brother, I booked a flight for the day after tomorrow. I have to leave then."

Fang Shaoyi furrowed his brow in concern. "That's too soon."

"I'll be fine in two more days," Yuan Ye replied, not even noticing his ankle. "They're waiting for me over there, I have to go back. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Can Fang Shaoyi really rest assured? But Yuan Ye really had to go. He was supposed to go back yesterday, but this little accident made him stay a few more days. The filming on the other side is about to start, and there are a bunch of things waiting for him on set.

He can't let his personal issues delay everyone's progress. It's not like him, and if he just stays home and rests because of a sprained ankle, it would be a blow to his soul.

Fang Shaoyi took personal leave to send him back to the set, and Yuan Ye couldn't stop him. Yuan Ye asked Fang Shaoyi in disbelief, "Brother, is it that I haven't been injured much in recent years? And the one time it happens, you become so anxious, even when it's just a small sprain? You're sending me back? On a plane?"

"Shut up," Fang Shaoyi frowned at him, "how many more injuries do you want to suffer?"

"I really don't need you to send me," Yuan Ye earnestly advised, "It's too much. I'm not even limping now, so what's the point of you sending me?"

"You don't have to worry about me," Fang Shaoyi covered his mouth with his hand, "I just want to send you."

Helpless, Yuan Ye could only nod and say with a smile, "Okay, okay."

Actually, Yuan Ye's foot injury was not visible to the naked eye, and he was walking completely normally. But Fang Shaoyi still insisted on sending him back and making sure he was settled before leaving. They even received inquiries from people at the airport, asking about Yuan Ye's foot.

Yuan Ye smiled and waved his hand, indicating that he was fine.

That day, Fang Shaoyi helped him to the hospital and many people saw it. Someone even took pictures of them at the entrance of the examination room. Yuan Ye didn't mind, but Fang Shaoyi's face was a bit cold and he restrained them from taking more photos.

That night, the news broke that Yuan Ye had a fracture and Fang Shaoyi took him to the hospital for an X-ray. There were several reasons for the fracture, but the most likely one was that they had a car accident on the way to the set. Fang Shaoyi narrowly escaped, but Yuan Ye broke his leg. They didn't bother to look at those online rumors, which were really annoying.

However, they were afraid that their fans would be too worried, so later on, Ji Xiaotao used Yuan Ye's Weibo to post a message saying that his leg was just sprained and not to worry.

There were still many people commenting under Yuan Ye's Weibo post, saying that he deserved it and that he had done too many bad things to not face consequences. These words were like a sharp knife, and his fans immediately jumped to his defense, launching a counterattack against the malicious comments. Passersby and haters also joined in, cursing back and forth at each other.

Later on, Ji Xiaotao deleted all of these disharmonious comments, as they were not worth keeping, whether they were insults or counterattacks. Despite being immersed in this industry for years, Ji Xiaotao still felt a bit uncomfortable when seeing these malicious comments, and he was not calm enough.

At first, he even created a fake account and commented, "What bad things did Yuan Ye do? Did you see it? If he also has to face consequences, maybe it's because the heavens are blind."

After sending the message, he realized he was too idle, what was he talking to these closed-eyed strangers for.

The rumors and gossip were something Yuan Ye was indifferent to. If he paid attention to every single one, his entire later life would be repressed. Why bother?

"Is your foot okay?" Feng Leizi asked as soon as he saw him.

"What do you think?" Yuan Ye sat in the chair and lifted the foot he had sprained. "As good as new."

"You recovered pretty quickly," Feng Leizi commented.

Yuan Ye just smiled and didn't say anything more about it. He turned his head and started talking about proper business.

In fact, Yuan Ye was just acting. The first two days, it just felt swollen and a little hot and numb. It wasn't until the third or fourth day that it really started to hurt and he couldn't exert any force. But Yuan Ye couldn't stand limping around and was afraid that Fang Shaoyi would worry too much, so he pretended that everything was fine.

But how could Fang Shaoyi not know that he was pretending? When he walked, there was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.

So when Fang Shaoyi called him at night, he said, "Elevate your foot, soak it in hot water, and apply heat. Don't be lazy."

"I'm almost all better," Yuan Ye said in a relaxed tone, "I don't feel much pain anymore. You focus on filming and don't worry about me."

Fang Shaoyi was silent on the phone for almost ten seconds, and then Yuan Ye's voice rose, "Hmm?"

When Fang Shaoyi spoke again, he let out a sigh. His voice carried a hint of compromise and seriousness as he said something that made Yuan Ye's nerves tremble: "If it were before...I might not have exposed your pretense."

This sentence left Yuan Ye speechless for a long time, but eventually he couldn't help but laugh.

Fang Shaoyi's voice was very soft, coming through the phone and into Yuan Ye's ear. He asked, "What's so funny?"

Yuan Ye had his arm resting on his forehead and spoke honestly, "My foot hurts now, so much that I can't sleep."

He might as well say it all, there was nothing much about it.

Fang Shaoyi responded with a low "Mm-hmm" and then said, "I know."

With his phone in hand, Yuan Ye scratched the edge of it with his fingers. He heard Fang Shaoyi say, "Do you think I can't tell that you're in pain?"

Yuan Ye closed his eyes and suddenly felt very comfortable. It was as if the pain had decreased significantly after he spoke about it.

"You've changed a lot," Yuan Ye smiled with his eyes closed and said to Fang Shaoyi on the other end of the phone, "I still feel a little unaccustomed at times."

Fang Shaoyi also laughed and asked him, "Then should I go back to being like before?"

"No," Yuan Ye said, "I really like it."

Later, Fang Shaoyi told him, "If it was before, I could even take a few days off and fly back, and let the later scenes be filmed first. Then, you could pretend not to be in pain and I could pretend to be worried for nothing. We could do all of that."

His words made Yuan Ye smile lightly, and Fang Shaoyi continued, "But it has to be a little different, to make up for these three years, right?"

Yuan Ye replied, "Yes."

Fang Shaoyi said, "I can see through your act when you're with me. I've told you this before. So if you want me not to worry, if you want me not to think too much, then you have to say it."

His speech was slow, and on such a night, it was soothing to hear, "If you say you're in pain, then I'll be relieved. If you say you're okay, then I'll be worried all day."

At this moment, every word he said was heard and felt by Yuan Ye, who almost immediately laughed and said, "Whoever isn't in pain is a bastard, I hurt so much I want to die."

Yuan Ye really liked him like this, and he was starting to feel a sense of calm in his heart. Change sometimes happens suddenly, but more often it happens gradually and imperceptibly. But no matter what, if it's a positive change, the person experiencing it will definitely have respond with their genuine emotions.

This kind of feedback brings a sense of security and can dispel some of the previous worries, which is all good.

The script on their side, "Hoarse", could be considered somewhat of a success. Everything went smoothly, and filming was about to start. Yuan Ye naturally had to go with the crew, as it was stipulated in the contract.

Yang Siran had actually been chosen as the younger brother of the male lead character. One reason was because he already had a suitable image, and the director had seen his performance in Director Jiang's film and thought it was pretty good. Plus, with the recommendation from Yuan Ye's side, as well as Geng Jinwei's methods and money, it wasn't surprising that he was ultimately chosen.

Investing in artistic films wasn't that profitable, and if they didn't win awards or sell foreign rights, they could very well lose money. The company had invested money into it, and Yang Siran was considered to be be brought in through those financial contributions.

However, the director had also carefully chosen him, even holding three auditions. There were three alternative actors, but in the end, he chose Yang Siran.

At the opening ceremony, both Yuan Ye and Yang Siran were present. The crowd was bustling, and Yang Siran stood next to Yuan Ye and quietly helped him block people. Whenever someone came by, he would lightly support Yuan Ye's arm, just in case someone bumped into him, it would be easier to help him.

Yuan Ye smiled and said, "Thanks, little brother. But you don't have to support me. Your Brother Ye is not that weak."

Yang Siran spoke softly and was a little embarrassed. "I've sprained my foot before, and I couldn't use it for half a year. If someone really bumped into you, you would definitely fall."

Yuan Ye glanced at him and sighed, "Even if you see through it, there's no need to say it out loud, little friend."

Yang Siran smiled and followed Yuan Ye like a little brother. In fact, he hadn't changed much from before. The last time he joined Director Jiang's crew, he followed Ji Xiaotao in the same way. Besides learning the ropes as a newcomer and actively helping Ji Xiaotao, he was also looking for a sense of belonging. In a strange place, he would take the initiative to approach those he was closer to.

Yuan Ye didn't mind him, and they were quite familiar with each other. If he wanted to follow along, Yuan Ye would just let him. Following Yuan Ye was an easy thing to do, and his discussions with others were also quite interesting. Listening to him speak was quite enjoyable. Moreover, following him allowed one to learn many things, even if they weren't directly related to filming.

Occasionally, when they had free time, they would chat. Yuan Ye suddenly remembered to ask him a couple of questions: "If you love music so much, why did you sign up here? Didn't any music company sign you on?"

Yang Siran nodded and replied, "Indeed, none did. Besides, I never wanted to be in the spotlight. Writing songs was good enough for me, and it gave me freedom."

"Then why did you end up entering the movie industry?" Yuan Ye asked him again.

"President Geng said I was suitable for acting, so I signed up," he replied, smiling slightly and lowering his head.

With a sideways glance, Yuan Ye looked at Yang Siran's expression for a few seconds before raising an eyebrow and asking, "Little brother, do you have someone you like?"

Yang Siran looked up at him and nodded, "Yes."

Yuan Ye chuckled at him and gave him another glance. Yang Siran asked, "What are you laughing at?"

Yuan Ye stared into his eyes and asked directly, "Don't tell me you like Brother Geng?"

The question caught Yang Siran off guard and he opened his mouth but couldn't answer. Yuan Ye sat up straight, stretched his arms, and said, "It's okay, you don't have to say anything."

"No, there's nothing I can't tell you," Yang Siran said, lowering his head and pulling on his ear. "Yes, I like President Geng."

Yuan Ye nodded, not intending to chat any further. Small talk was fine, but he didn't want to pry into someone else's privacy.

However, Yang Siran continued with another sentence: "...I've liked him for many years."