Chapter 21
When Lu Xiao returned to the set, the afternoon shoot was just getting underway. He sat straight down in front of the makeup mirror. The light green T-shirt he’d been wearing was replaced with a pure white shirt. The makeup artist rendered his sharp, handsome features with an extra touch of pallor and fragility, giving him an overall aura of steady depth.
“I’m at the set,” Lu Xiao messaged Meng Xueyuan to report in.
That afternoon’s scene depicted the little mountain god returning to the mountains. The CEO, distracted and absent-minded, drove home on autopilot, only to end up downstairs at the little mountain god’s rented apartment. Startled awake, he then decided to go find him.
This scene didn’t involve Meng Xueyuan. After eating, he strolled over to watch, standing at the edge of the filming area.
Lu Xiao looking absent-minded—he’d still be handsome, right?
Meng Xueyuan watched as the “CEO” slowly drove over, only to be stopped by security: unregistered vehicles weren’t allowed in.
In filming, driving scenes were never actually shot on the road. Instead, a tow truck was used, carrying both car and actor. The shot just now of Lu Xiao driving in from the main road had been filmed that way.
Seeing a god-tier race car driver like Lu Xiao solemnly pretending to drive a fake car—Meng Xueyuan couldn’t help but find it funny and pressed his lips together.
[Facing the security guard’s questioning, the “CEO” fell into a long silence. He picked up a cigarette case from the center console, took one out, and handed the rest to the guard. “Got a light?”
The “security guard” fished out a lighter. “Here. Who are you looking for?”
Shielding the flame with his hand, the “CEO” lit the cigarette and shook his head, the ember in his eyes flickering.]
Meng Xueyuan lifted his heel slightly, wanting a clearer look at Lu Xiao’s expression. If he were the little mountain god, seeing Lu Xiao like this, he’d definitely run back from the mountains, heart aching.
Smoking was bad—but this was a movie-only version. It was okay to watch.
“Meng Xueyuan!” someone called out.
Meng Xueyuan turned around. The residential complex entrance was being used as a temporary set and was cordoned off; only staff were allowed in.
This long-limbed gentleman clearly wasn’t staff, yet somehow had a pass.
Chu Hao carried over a foam box. The moment Meng Xueyuan turned, Chu Hao felt a flicker of retreat—what a cold, stunning beauty! He braced himself and said, “I’m Lu Xiao’s friend, Chu Hao. I was passing by and brought him something. He’s filming—could you help pass it on?”
Hearing this, Lu Xiao, who was in the middle of shooting, got out of the car and shot him a warning look: don’t talk nonsense.
Chu Hao flashed him an OK sign, indicating he was totally reliable.
Meng Xueyuan asked, “Were you the one who brought him food yesterday too?”
Chu Hao replied, “Yeah. He wasn’t around, so I gave it to the director. The director even gave me a pass.”
Meng Xueyuan didn’t presume to accept it for Lu Xiao. “Lu Xiao said you were poisoning him.”
Chu Hao looked wronged and patted the foam box. “This is good stuff. I was afraid it wouldn’t be fresh, so I personally brought it over. Talk about biting the hand of Lü Dongbin.”
“You can just toss it in the pan and fry it—it’s ready to eat. Some people even eat it raw, but I wouldn’t recommend that.” Chu Hao shoved the foam box into Meng Xueyuan’s arms in one go, sparing Lu Xiao’s face by not mentioning its kidney-boosting, virility-enhancing effects, and said hypocritically, “It’s delicious—like biting into a burst of soy milk. Tell him to eat more. Filming is hard work.”
No matter what anyone else said, Lu San never listened—but whatever Meng Xueyuan said always worked. Chu Hao couldn’t understand why. Even if he really had poisoned Lu Xiao, once it passed through Meng Xueyuan’s hands, Lu Xiao would probably swallow it with pleasure.
Meng Xueyuan felt the weight in his hands and suddenly caught a familiar scent at the tip of his nose. He stared down at the foam box, disbelief flashing in his eyes.
Chu Hao had actually brought Lu Xiao hornet pupae.
Hornet pupae were indeed extremely nourishing—more so than fish oil—packed with high-quality protein. Some people ate them to boost virility, and the price could be driven up to over a thousand per jin.
As the queen of the honeybee clan, Meng Xueyuan was very familiar with other bee species. Hornets were venomous and occasionally attacked humans. Unlike honeybees, which fed only on pollen, hornets were omnivorous: they ate other insects and would even bore into beehives to prey on honeybee larvae.
A single hornet could slaughter forty bees in one minute.
Chinese honeybees, however, had their own wisdom. They would swarm together, trapping the hornet in the center and fanning their wings to raise the temperature. Hornets couldn’t tolerate heat and would flee in panic.
Beekeepers all hated hornets. If a nest was found nearby, it had to be destroyed. When he was little, clan members once discovered hornets around their settlement and worked together to remove the nest. Meng Xueyuan had even eaten a couple of fried hornet pupae back then.
In short: the pupae of bees’ natural enemies—tasty, and edible.
Holding the foam box, Meng Xueyuan’s fingers tightened slightly.
Chu Hao scratched his head, afraid this aloof, high-and-mighty beauty might be horrified by the pale, plump pupae and that Lu Xiao would later come after him for it. “Don’t open it—wait for Lu Xiao to do it.”
After saying that, he felt it sounded off and added honestly, “They’re bee pupae. Kind of gross. I know someone who specializes in dealing with wild hornet nests and got me a jin.”
Meng Xueyuan lowered his lashes. Oh—bee pupae. He’d seen plenty of those.
What puzzled him was why this man was trying to ‘nourish’ Lu Xiao’s kidneys. Had brotherly affection somehow gone off the rails?
Faced with Meng Xueyuan’s cool, pure, untainted gaze—holy as snow covering the earth—Chu Hao grew a little embarrassed himself and guiltily rubbed his nose. Lu Xiao not having the guts… was understandable.
The supposedly omnipotent Third Young Master Lu kept running into walls with Meng Xueyuan, and never said a word about it. As a brother, Chu Hao was half anxious, half schadenfreude-filled, itching to stick his eyes to Lu Xiao’s back and watch the spectacle.
See? He was just standing here talking to Meng Xueyuan for a few sentences, and Lu Xiao’s gaze was already murderous.
“I’ve got things to do—I’ll head off,” Chu Hao said.
He pulled an invitation from his pocket. “I’m getting married next weekend. You and Lu Xiao should come.”
Hm? He had a partner now?
Meng Xueyuan freed one hand to take the invitation. “Okay.”
Chu Hao laughed. “Lu Xiao says you like playing mahjong. My partner plays too—you can play together then.”
Meng Xueyuan processed that for a moment. “Okay.”
Chu Hao: ?
Why did it feel like Meng Xueyuan’s attitude suddenly softened? Was it just politeness toward a departing guest?
Cradling the foam box, Meng Xueyuan figured Lu Xiao would still be busy for a while. He turned on his heel and headed toward the hotel where they were staying.
He’d prepare this kidney-boosting holy dish for Lu Xiao first!
Out of the corner of his eye, Lu Xiao saw Meng Xueyuan’s utterly heartless retreating back and felt his heart clench.
“That’s it, Lu Xiao—that absent-minded look! It’s even better than the last take. I’ve got a new idea—we’ll shoot another one,” the director said excitedly.
Lu Xiao: “…” So many ideas every single day.
The hotel had been booked out by the crew, and the kitchen was open for their use. Passing the small convenience store, Meng Xueyuan picked up some vegetables and seasonings, planning to make three dishes and a soup.
Before cooking, he took out his phone and sent Lu Xiao a message.
[Thanks for coming home with me. When you’re done filming, come back to the hotel—I’ll treat you to dinner.]
Setting the phone aside, Meng Xueyuan tied on an apron, grabbed a knife, sliced along the seam of the foam box, lifted the lid, and was hit by a rush of cold air. Ice packs lay on top of the pupae to keep them fresh.
He removed the ice packs, took out the sealed container, poured out the pupae, rinsed them twice, and drained the water.
Soft and slippery, the pupae were indeed disgusting to some people. Meng Xueyuan remained expressionless. He heated oil in a pan—the pupae were high in protein, so the other dishes would be kept light.
He first stir-fried seasonal vegetables with beef, then made a dry-fried broccoli dish. Next, he brought water to a boil and cooked a simple napa cabbage soup, tossing in a few small pupae.
Finally, he reheated the pan, poured in oil, and tipped in most of the pupae to fry.
The pupae had their own aroma. Straight into the pan, fried until golden and crispy—fresh, fragrant, and delicious.
Lu Xiao returned and knocked on the kitchen door to signal he was coming in.
Meng Xueyuan spun around urgently and grabbed the half-open glass door. “It’s almost ready. It’s full of oil fumes in here—you don’t need to come in.”
The pupae weren’t done yet. If Lu Xiao saw what the ingredients looked like originally and lost his appetite, what then?
How could Lu Xiao bear to let his wife toil in the kitchen? Lowering his head, he coaxed, “I’ll help you.”
Meng Xueyuan remained firm. “Go upstairs and wash your face.”
Lu Xiao gave up. “Okay. I’ll carry the dishes once they’re ready.”
While they were talking, the pupae finished frying and changed color. A moment later, Meng Xueyuan scooped them out onto a delicate plate and even took two decorative flowers from the hotel fridge to garnish it.
Placing the three dishes and one soup on a room-service trolley, Meng Xueyuan took the elevator back to their room.
The moment Lu Xiao stepped out of the bathroom, he saw the pupae transformed into a finished dish on the table.
Tch… Lu Xiao’s teeth ached slightly. Judging by Meng Xueyuan’s expression, he still didn’t know Chu Hao’s real intentions. What if he accidentally saw it online someday?
He was already about to burst, and now he was being “nourished”? Wasn’t that unjust? Good-for-nothing friends like that should be cut off sooner rather than later!
He couldn’t eat it—otherwise he’d never be able to clear his name, even jumping into the Yellow River.
“Let’s eat.”
Meng Xueyuan handed Lu Xiao a set of chopsticks and bowl, then held his own bowl of white rice and sat up straight, sneaking glances at Lu Xiao out of the corner of his eye.
Lu Xiao picked up some greens.
Lu Xiao picked up some beef…
Sigh. Meng Xueyuan lowered his head and shoveled a mouthful of rice. If he’d known, he wouldn’t have stir-fried beef—if there were only one meat dish on the table, with Lu Xiao being such a carnivore, he’d have had no choice but to eat the pupae.
“Ahem…” Meng Xueyuan cleared his throat and pushed the pupae dish in front of Lu Xiao. “Your friend went out of his way to bring them. Aren’t you going to try them?”
Lu Xiao: “…” The bee pupae might have been a friend’s gift, but they were fried by his wife. Not eating them would be disrespectful to all the effort he’d put in, getting smoked by the oil fumes.
Lu Xiao picked up a tiny one with restraint. After frying, it actually looked pretty good. He bit down—crunch.
Meng Xueyuan: “Empty the plate. Don’t waste food.”
Lu Xiao picked up another. Putting aside everything else, getting to eat a meal cooked by his wife after work was just too blissful.
Meng Xueyuan propped his chin on his hand and said softly, “After eating the small ones, want to eat the big ones?”
Lu Xiao: “Huh?”
Meng Xueyuan’s eyelashes fluttered. “Nothing. I mean, don’t just eat the small ones. The big ones are tasty.”
The queen bee is the biggest bee, you know.
And no one eats the big ones.
Under his wife’s gentle but relentless guidance, Lu Xiao polished off most of the plate and even served himself a bowl of soup.
After dinner, there was still some time left on that entertainment-industry “reform” variety show they’d been watching last time, so Lu Xiao and Meng Xueyuan leaned together to watch the screen projection again.
On the screen, a certain disgraced celebrity was pulling weeds in a peanut field.
Lu Xiao was distracted. He’d only asked Meng Xueyuan for help last night—would asking too often make his wife angry?
Meng Xueyuan crossed his arms and suddenly asked, “Lu Xiao, don’t you feel a bit hot?”
Lu Xiao’s heart jolted. Could it be that he wasn’t the only one reacting? Right—Meng Xueyuan was a normal person too. How could he be completely immune to such a powerful tonic?
He thought again of his dubious friend’s well-meaning intentions. What if he were a bit bolder?
Meng Xueyuan had helped him twice already—returning the favor once wouldn’t be too much, right?
Why hadn’t he thought of this earlier?
Trying his best to sound like a gentleman, Lu Xiao said, “Do you need my help? This kind of thing is normal—coworkers helping each other out.”
Normal? Meng Xueyuan said with faint displeasure, “I think it’s pretty special.”
Lu Xiao choked for a moment, then said, “With our relationship, it counts as normal. I’m not that kind of casual person.”
Meng Xueyuan did need a bit of help, but he still wanted to complete his mission first. “Thanks, I don’t need it.”
The corner of Lu Xiao’s mouth stiffened. Why did his wife seem almost frigid? Would there ever be a chance in this lifetime?
Meng Xueyuan added, “But I can help you.”
Lu Xiao’s emotions bounced back and forth between happiness and frustration. He corrected him, “It can’t be just me feeling good every time.”
Meng Xueyuan had a sudden idea. “My fingers are tired from chopping vegetables today. I don’t feel like using my hands.”
Lu Xiao instantly regretted everything. This really was a total loss.
Heat steamed up Meng Xueyuan’s cheeks, like a peony in full bloom—gorgeous in every way. If the sun burned any fiercer, its branch would bend, the blossom drooping.
His beautiful lips parted slightly as he asked with concern, “Then besides my fingers, are there other ways I can help you?”
Lu Xiao: ?!
Legs too? ?
Meng Xueyuan continued, “If you really feel bad about it, is there a way to make me comfortable at the same time?”
Lu Xiao: ?!
What kind of sudden plot twist with conditions was this?!
How had the scope suddenly expanded into such profound territory?!
Lu Xiao was afraid he’d misunderstood, yet he didn’t dare ask Meng Xueyuan to repeat himself. Maybe the bee pupae had kicked in a little. Better to go along with it than miss the chance entirely.
He knelt up, hands on Meng Xueyuan’s shoulders. “Wait for me two minutes—no, one minute.”
Meng Xueyuan didn’t know what he was going to do. Buy protection?
“Don’t—”
Lu Xiao had already leapt off the bed at lightning speed, grabbed his phone, and rushed out.
Meng Xueyuan: “…”
Lu Xiao shut the door, cutting his voice off from inside, and called his dad in a panic. “Dad, I won’t get someone pregnant, right?”
After all, his dad had three kids—what if he’d inherited something?
He wasn’t afraid of causing a pregnancy; he just felt that if there was any possibility at all, Meng Xueyuan had the right to know.
Shen Ning paused, then said softly, “You think too highly of yourself.” With bloodlines diluted to that extent, it’d take a bee pollinating you. But did people with bee bloodlines really exist in this world?
Lu Xiao was relieved. “Okay.”
Shen Ning: “You called just to ask that?”
Lu Xiao: “I’ll explain when I come home next time. Bye, Dad.”
Shen Ning: “…”
Call duration: thirty seconds.
Lu Xiao went back, knelt on one knee at the foot of the bed, keeping a distance of about one and a half meters from Meng Xueyuan—far enough that he couldn’t reach him, barely enough to keep his self-control.
“Can I do something more excessive?”
