Male Sing and His Pet Owner: Chapter 12

Lu Jiayin: Brother Hang, you should lose your temper less. It’s not good for your health either. Lele really has a good temperament. If you scare him away again, where are you going to find another suitable assistant?

Zhan Hang: I said, I didn’t hit him! (Angry) Am I not good enough to him?

Lu Jiayin: No, no, I was just saying. After all, who would randomly fall so badly at home? Did he fall down the stairs?

Zhan Hang: ……..

He really didn’t want to say that he had suddenly started acting and scared Zhao Kaile. That really sounded a bit embarrassing.

Fortunately, Lu Jiayin didn’t ask further. She only reminded him that he would be entering the film set soon, so he should regulate his schedule during this period, ensure sleep quality and physical health. Zhan Hang agreed casually, then put down his phone and went to take a shower.

Zhao Kaile asked from outside: “Brother Hang, are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?”

Zhan Hang was showering with his eyes closed and didn’t hear him. Zhao Kaile thought he was in a bad mood again, so he had to shut his mouth and leave, limping to the kitchen.

Food reheated twice definitely wouldn’t taste good. He shouldn’t eat too much at night, and the calories shouldn’t be too high either. Zhao Kaile thought about it and decided to make something easy to digest for Zhan Hang. However, halfway through cooking, he suddenly forgot the ratio of seasonings. He naturally reached into his pants pocket and realized his phone wasn’t there.

Damn, my new phone!

Zhao Kaile panicked a little and immediately searched everywhere for his phone. It wasn’t in the kitchen on the first floor, not in the living room, not in the bathroom, not even under the sofa. Where could it be? Wasn’t it just in his hand??

He went up to the second floor without much hope. Just as he was about to knock on Zhan Hang’s door, he heard Zhan Hang talking on the phone inside.

He first spoke with some politeness: “What…….. I am his superior. Who are you?” Then his tone gradually rose: “He’ll be back when he gets back. You can call back later.” Finally, he completely exploded: “Huh??? What do you mean I stole his phone??? Your number isn’t in his contact list, sir. I think you’re the one who looks more like a scammer. Oh? You say you’re his brother and you are? You’d better be able to prove it!”

When Zhao Kaile heard this, he finally understood and immediately knocked on the door anxiously: “Brother Hang, open the door!”

Zhan Hang opened the door. In his hand was indeed Zhao Kaile’s phone. He was bare-chested, his hair not yet dried, water stains spreading slightly at his feet, his expression a bit irritable.

“He hung up.” Zhan Hang tossed the phone back to him: “Is he really your brother?”

Zhao Kaile didn’t have the mind to respond to him at the moment. He frowned and called back, but no one answered on the other end.

Zhan Hang said while drying his hair: “This kind of number should be a virtual number. Only you can receive it. Usually, these are scam calls.”

Zhao Kaile looked at the phone screen disappointedly and let out a soft breath.

Zhan Hang’s movements in drying his hair slowed down. After all, the other party hanging up was somewhat related to him. So he cleared his throat and, for the first time ever, asked with a frown: “What exactly is going on?”

Zhao Kaile turned off the phone screen, smiled, and said: “Nothing.”

Zhan Hang glanced at him sideways a few times: “Come in and help me blow dry my hair.”

Zhao Kaile nodded, went in, took the hairdryer, and buzzed it for a while. After drying, he was still absent-minded and wandering in spirit. When Zhan Hang called him three times during skincare, he didn’t wake up. Zhan Hang lost his mood because of his listless appearance, so he had to wave his hand to stop, call him over, and have him sit down in front of him.

“You’re the assistant Zhao Kaile. Who are you showing this face to? Hmm?” Zhan Hang raised an eyebrow and said: “If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up. What’s someone with a fifty-fifty upper and lower body ratio like you got to worry about?”

Zhao Kaile: “…….”

At a time like this, you still have the mood to mock my figure!! Do male celebrities really not have any sympathy at all?! And I’m not fifty-fifty at all!

Zhan Hang sat in front of him, looking at him as if judging him, squinting his eyes and asking: “Are you cursing me?”

“No, no, no, no.” Zhao Kaile was a bit intimidated. He thought about it and felt there was nothing he couldn’t say, so he said frankly: “Sorry, Brother Hang, I really am……… It’s just, my brother owes money to online lenders and ran away. I can’t contact him. I haven’t seen him in almost three months, so I’m quite worried.”

Zhan Hang asked: “Owes online loans? How much?”

Zhao Kaile said despairingly: “One million two hundred fifty thousand. The interest is still compounding.”

Zhan Hang found it inconceivable: “Is just over a million worth you crying and making a fuss here?”

Zhao Kaile was silent.

First, he wasn’t crying and making a fuss.

Second, what do you mean “just over a million”??

Huh???

Can you put the word “just” in front of over a million??

Zhan Hang casually tossed his phone to him: “What platform? I told you the password before. Go pay it off first.”

Zhao Kaile suddenly felt the entire world had become fantastical.

He thought calmly for a while and asked: “Brother Hang…… how is the interest calculated here?”

Zhan Hang seemed to find it very amusing: “You think I care about that bit of interest from you??”

Zhao Kaile pinched his philtrum to prevent himself from fainting on the spot.

In his eyes, a pair of huge, pure white wings suddenly sprouted behind Zhan Hang, radiating a sacred and inviolable dazzling light!

Zhan Hang, meanwhile, leaned lazily against the headboard, pointing at him: “You’d better remember my great kindness and virtue, serve me honestly like an ox or a horse, and don’t think about slacking off and loafing around all day. Understand?”

As the words fell, the light suddenly dimmed.

Zhao Kaile nodded, smiled, and said stiffly: “Okay.”

Late at night, Zhao Kaile tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep no matter what. In his mind, one moment it was Zhan Hang’s image as a little devil brandishing a fork at him in anger, the next it was his image as an angel with flapping wings, high above. He was practically about to have a split personality.

He opened his eyes and looked at the text message from the platform confirming the loan had been settled. He still found it somewhat unbelievable.

This feeling was truly wonderful. Just a few days ago, he had thought this was an astronomical figure that would require ten or twenty years of his youth to pay off. Yet Zhan Hang suddenly extended a helping hand and casually resolved the matter.

Indeed…….. Celebrities probably earn hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions for filming one production. This small amount of money should be like spilling water to him……. But isn’t he afraid that I’ll run away after he helps me pay off the debt?? Although I wouldn’t really run away.

Past one o’clock, Zhao Kaile still hadn’t fallen asleep, staring at the ceiling and blinking.

He turned over again and sent a string of messages to Zhao Kaiming, telling him the crisis was resolved and he didn’t need to hide and run around anymore. Only then did he put down his phone and force himself to sleep.

Without the debt collection calls, Zhao Kaile’s mentality obviously improved a lot, and the swelling in his foot also went down quickly. Since room and board were covered anyway, he didn’t have any other places to spend money. He just comforted himself that as long as the debt wasn’t accruing interest, he could slowly pay it off.

Ever since Zhan Hang took on the new film, he liked to sit in one place every day without moving, memorizing lines, and would call Zhao Kaile over from time to time to have him sit honestly and run lines with him, regardless of the role. Sometimes they would even run emotional scenes. Zhao Kaile was quite embarrassed at first, but later he got used to it.

The day before the film started shooting, Zhan Hang still had one part he hadn’t figured out, so he pressed Zhao Kaile to run through it again.

Zhao Kaile looked at the script, thought for a bit, and asked: “Brother Hang, can lines be changed?”

Zhan Hang pondered the emotion and said casually: “That depends on what status you have.”

“I think at this part, you don’t need to be so forceful.” Zhao Kaile said: “Because your character……. Xiao Yao’s character is a cold-faced assassin without feelings. Even if the one dying now is the woman he loves most, he can keep his facial features still, his emotions can remain unfluctuating, but he needs to shed a few tears.”

Zhan Hang looked up at him, seeming to wait for him to continue.

Zhao Kaile immediately cowered: “Sorry, I was just talking nonsense. Pretend you didn’t hear it…….”

Zhan Hang asked: “You mean that shedding tears with a blank expression expresses emotion better than shouting with distorted features. Is that what you mean?”

Zhao Kaile said carefully: “It’s not exactly a blank expression……. If the gaze is on point, that’s enough. Silence is more powerful than sound. Losing one’s voice can better express a breakdown.”

Zhan Hang nodded: “Mm, I roughly understand what you mean.”

Zhao Kaile let out a breath. Zhan Hang’s accommodating attitude really surprised him a bit.

“Change what lines?” Zhan Hang said: “Keep talking.”

Zhao Kaile squirmed: “Do I still need to say more……. This isn’t very good.”

Zhan Hang scolded: “I told you to talk, so talk. It’s not like we have to film according to your idea after you finish.”

“……..” Zhao Kaile pointed at the script and said boldly with confidence: “‘If there is an afterlife, we will continue our predestined bond’ is too straightforward. Simply erase the four words ‘continue our predestined bond.’ Leave the rest unsaid. You only need to hold her and shed tears. The readers……. the audience will understand.”

Zhan Hang made a sound of agreement and mentally constructed the scene he described.

The two looked at each other.

Zhan Hang said: “Come here, let me try.”

Zhao Kaile: “???”

A moment later, Zhao Kaile’s lower body was lying on the floor, his upper body cradled in Zhan Hang’s arms, eyes closed, playing the female lead’s corpse.

Zhan Hang stroked his face and brewed emotion for a while. Zhao Kaile felt a bit ticklish and couldn’t hold back a laugh: “Brother Hang……. Maybe you should just hug a pillow instead. I don’t think I can do this.”

“……..” Zhan Hang said angrily: “How can I act looking at a pillow?? Close your eyes!”

Zhao Kaile had no choice but to close his eyes again, purse his lips, and try his best not to break character.

Zhan Hang called him softly: “Qing’er……..”

“Qing’er, I came too late.” Zhan Hang lifted Zhao Kaile’s head a little higher, lowered his head to press his cheek against his, his Adam’s apple bobbing several times, and said in a deep voice: “It’s my fault……. It’s my fault for not protecting you.”

He panted in pain, his expression agonized, and hugged the person in his arms tightly. His eyes were already completely red. He raised his head to pause for a moment, then choked up again: “It’s my incompetence, it’s my incompetence…….” “Qing’er.”

“Qing’er……..”

“If there is an afterlife…….”

Zhan Hang lowered his head. Hot tears instantly rolled down, landing on Zhao Kaile’s face with a soft pat.

Zhao Kaile reflexively opened his eyes and saw Zhan Hang looking at him with red-rimmed eyes, filled with the deep affection of regret that came too late.