Huayu 1999: Starting with nothing but getting something for nothing

Yang Che glanced at her sideways, then looked at the rice soup with a layer of rice oil floating on the coffee table. He paused, picked it up, and slowly drank it. There was a little soup in it, but it was very comforting to drink.

The B vitamins in rice are important components of the coenzymes needed by the liver to break down alcohol. They can accelerate the conversion of ethanol into acetaldehyde, and further metabolize it into harmless acetic acid, thus reducing the time alcohol stays in the body.

It really works, and many hangover remedies are made from rice...

"Thank you, is Tongtong there?"

"Yes, Afei went out after putting her to sleep."

Yang Che nodded, drank the rice porridge, and then slowly went upstairs.

The master bedroom door was already closed. Yang Che turned the handle, thankfully it wasn't locked from the inside, otherwise he really would have turned around and left.

I glanced inside and saw that she was already lying in bed with her back to me.

Yang Che took his pajamas out of the closet and went to the bathroom.

Sitting on a small stool, leaning against the wall, with the water rushing over his head, he felt a sense of comfort.

Ever since Liu Xinmo staged an accident for him, he has been in a very tense state.

Public pressure, guilt towards women and their families, the Olympic bid committee, exams, film revenue sharing, social obligations...

His mind never stops; it's become a habit. Like today's meal, it was because he remembered the TV series "The Grand Mansion Gate," and then the open audition for the female lead was also because Zhang Yimou mentioned the movie, and then he came up with the website promotion plan on the spur of the moment.

It wasn't that no one cared about him; it was just that those who wanted to care about him saw him as strong as ever and started relying on him again, just like before.

After an unknown amount of time, the bathroom door slowly opened, and Wang Fei looked at him with an inexplicable expression.

"Asleep?"

Hearing the sound, Yang Che turned off the shower, looked up to wipe his face, and smiled at her.

"You care about me?"

Wang Fei rolled her eyes, turned around and went back to her bedroom.

Yang Che dried himself off, and without putting on his pajamas, he hopped to the bedside, lifted the covers, and crawled in. He then shivered involuntarily; it was really cold.

Wang Fei, who was bumped by him, moved to the other side in disgust.

Yang Che clicked his tongue, chased after her, and put his arm around her waist: "That's enough. After today, my reputation for being afraid of my wife will probably spread far and wide in the industry."

Upon hearing this, Wang Fei turned around to face him, but said coldly, "That sounds better than me being a mistress who's throwing myself at someone."

Yang Che frowned: "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Wang Fei sat up: "What are you pretending for? Don't you know? How can you be like this? What kind of person do you take me for?"

"What are you yelling for? Wake Tongtong up again."

Wang Fei took a deep breath. It wasn't that she was afraid of waking up her daughter in the next room; she was genuinely annoyed with him. What was he pretending to be, pretending to be a good person? After giving him a speechless look, she lay back down and said to him with her back to him, "Don't touch me."

Yang Che looked exhausted. He wanted to leave, but felt unable to move.

After a few dozen seconds, Wang Fei reached out and turned off the bedside lamp, plunging the room into darkness.

Yang Che spoke with a strained voice, "I'm sorry, I really have been avoiding you."

Wang Fei visibly stiffened in the darkness, but instead of getting angry, she simply responded with a soft "Mm".

Yang Che said helplessly, "Although I am indeed very capable, I am also a human being. These successive incidents, and those two..."

Wang Fei interrupted, "You really are... shameless."

Yang Che was puzzled: "Am I not awesome?"

"Awesome, you're absolutely awesome."

"So, considering how awesome I am, can you please take the initiative, finish quickly and go to sleep? We have to go tomorrow..."

Wang Fei laughed in anger, turned around, and pinched and bit her.

Then the two of them rolled around in a ball.

But once they started, neither of them used the other as a target for their frustrations; instead, they seemed to be trying to please each other.

She was indeed wronged, but she also understood his predicament.

He was indeed frustrated, but he also understood her grievances.

"elder sister."

"Um?"

"Actually, I felt quite honored when you showed up in the private room today."

"Then why are you still sulking!"

"I tried to hold your hand twice, and you shook it off both times. Don't I have any pride?"

"How many times have I called you? Don't I have any pride?"

"My intention was to ensure everyone received the benefits... The situation is special, and it's during a special phase, can't you be a little more understanding?"

"Um...shut up, uh...concentrate."

"You can't do this, you're not going to do it."

"Fine, then don't do it. Get out of here."

Yang Che actually went down.

Wang Fei was furious. He gritted his teeth and kicked him, but the other man remained unmoved.

Wang Fei sneered, then she calmed down, sat up, and busied herself with her work.

Yang Che looked at the ceiling and sighed. Men are also a vulnerable group.

Then he turned on the light.

Wang Fei did not feel uncomfortable because she kept her eyes closed.

Yang Che ultimately didn't let her overwork herself, since he was now completely sober.

The "和" in the idiom "床头打架床尾和" was originally "合", but it was changed to "和" for the sake of elegance in writing.

Fifty-two minutes and forty-five seconds later, the two were once again deeply in love, inseparable.

Wang Fei lightly traced his lower abdomen with her fingernails, her voice even softer: "I may be being dramatic, but I'm about to fly to Hong Kong."

Yang Che knew that this was her way of apologizing.

"How about we produce your new album in two different places? We can give the six songs we collaborated on to Zhang Yadong, and the other four to Lao Liang."

"Six poems in total, with a plan for twelve in total."

Why are you correcting me at this time?

"Oh, I'll talk to Sister Kuan tomorrow. You're here in Beijing too."

"Alright."

"Is it that difficult?"

"No, I'm afraid I can't be available whenever I need me."

"You can come over regularly."

Yang Che paused for a moment, then replied, "Okay."

Wang Fei didn't continue the conversation. She yawned, closed her eyes, and only slightly tightened the hand on his waist.

The next day arrived in the blink of an eye.

Tongtong stared wide-eyed at the man sitting on the sofa, a man who seemed both familiar and strange.

Yang Che smiled and asked, "Tongtong, did you take a bath today?"

Tongtong was full of doubts; she thought he was sick.

However, Yang Che was not discouraged and continued to chat with her. He knew exactly how to quickly build a relationship with a three- or four-year-old child.

What's your favorite color? Why?

Who do you like to play with the most?

Describe your mother in three words.

"What would you do if your mother got sick?"

"......"

As Wang Fei's daughter answered earnestly with a serious expression, a smile appeared on her face just like his.

When Yang Che left, Tongtong waved goodbye and said, "Goodbye, Uncle," before turning around and playing with her toys.

She's always been just like her mother, or perhaps she's gotten used to parting from a young age and doesn't care about it anymore.