FLBOTCP Chapter 50
Full Level Bigshot Only Takes the Career Path Chapter 50
Gu Sui doesn’t really care and smiled, “That’s fine. I haven’t tidied up my shabby place for over half a month.”
Pei Mingzhan whispered to Zhao Yao, “Let’s stay in a hotel tonight.”
Gu Sui’s place is not considered simple, but he’s not often at home and frequently works overtime and goes on business trips. It’s common for him to not return home for ten days or half a month, so his house is often neglected.
“Okay.”
Previously, Zhao Yao didn’t pay much attention to eating and lodging. When working late or pulling all-nighters, he could sleep in the office, so staying in a hotel or squeezing into Gu Sui’s place made no difference to him. However, now when he thought about it, he inexplicably started considering the issue of sleep. Last time when he stayed at Pei Mingzhan’s place, he had the problem of not recognizing the bed, but Pei Mingzhan’s guest room was well-kept, so he didn’t pay much attention to it. But now, hearing that Gu Sui’s place hadn’t been cleaned for over ten days, even though he felt like he could talk with Gu Sui for a few more hours, he felt that an uncomfortable living environment might cause insomnia.
The three of them discussed things for a while, and it wasn’t until 8 o’clock that Gu Sui treated them to a meal. Afterward, Pei Mingzhan drove with Zhao Yao to a nearby hotel.
Gu Sui’s studio was a bit far from the city center, located in a somewhat suburban area where there were hardly any upscale hotels nearby. They finally found a small hotel with good reviews.
After Pei Mingzhan parked the car, the two of them walked into the hotel lobby. Even before reaching the counter, Zhao Yao handed his ID card to Pei Mingzhan.
Both of them were wearing hats, and today’s outing was relatively simple. They wore the masks and hats securely.
The hotel lobby was still crowded with people. Pei Mingzhan had originally thought that there wouldn’t be many people in the suburban hotels, but he didn’t expect to encounter so many.
Pei Mingzhan handed over the ID cards and said, “We need a room for two. What rooms are available now?”
The hotel receptionist asked upon seeing the situation, “Hello, did you make a reservation online?”
“We’re booking now.” Pei Mingzhan saw the staff member take the ID cards, “No, do you have any available rooms?”
The receptionist looked at Pei Mingzhan’s attire and said, “Hello, please take off your mask.”
She took the ID cards and, upon seeing the slightly familiar name on them, looked at the person in front of her once again. Isn’t this the Movie Emperor Pei Mingzhan?
Pei Mingzhan pulled up his mask and asked, “Do you have any rooms available?”
The hotel receptionist, maintaining professionalism, calmly checked the hotel system and then said, “Mr. Pei, we don’t have any single rooms available anymore. Would a king suite be acceptable?”
Pei Mingzhan hesitated for a moment and asked, “No twin beds?”
The receptionist felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Even our twin suite is fully booked. We only have one king suite left.”
She briefly explained the situation, mentioning that the nearby tourist attractions had become popular on social media, resulting in a high number of visitors during this period. The hotel frequently experienced full occupancy.
Pei Mingzhan hesitated slightly and asked, “King suite?”
The receptionist politely inquired, “Yes, would you like me to arrange it for you?”
Pei Mingzhan asked Zhao Yao, “Is a king suite okay?”
Zhao Yao didn’t mind and replied, “Either is fine. Since it’s a tourist area, other hotels nearby might not have vacancies either.”
Seeing that the two of them had no objections, the receptionist proceeded with the check-in process.
“If you have any needs, feel free to contact our front desk. Enjoy your stay.”
The two of them avoided the crowd and headed towards the direction of the elevator, but people still curiously glanced their way.
On the way, Pei Mingzhan said, “Let’s make do with staying for one night. It’s a bit late to drive to another place now.”
Moreover, there weren’t many highly-rated hotels in the vicinity, and both of them had notable identities. Considering privacy concerns, it was better to choose a high-quality hotel.
“It’s fine,” Zhao Yao said casually, glancing at the hotel’s decorations.
The two of them quickly arrived at the designated floor. Just as Pei Mingzhan pushed open the door, he realized something was off. He carefully scanned the decor of the suite and felt that it was a bit too suggestive. The overall style had warm tones, and even the bathroom had semi-transparent glass decorations.
Zhao Yao didn’t pay attention to these details. After placing their luggage, he carefully inspected the layout of the room and confirmed that everything was fine before asking, “Should you take a shower first, or should I?”
His gaze stopped at the bathroom, and that was when he noticed that something seemed a bit off about the room. The bathtub was quite prominent…
Clearly, this was not just a simple king suite but rather resembled a couple’s suite within a king-sized room.
Pei Mingzhan said, “I’ll go ask the front desk.”
Zhao Yao furrowed his brows slightly as he looked at the other decorations and then said, “Wait.”
Pei Mingzhan: ?
Curiously, Zhao Yao walked around and explored the entire suite. Afterward, he said to Pei Mingzhan, “I saw many online users discussing hotel issues before. They mentioned that when couples book hotel rooms, they often choose more special rooms.”
In his previous life, when he stayed in hotels for business trips, his assistant always made cautious arrangements, mostly in top-tier or executive suites. He rarely encountered hotel rooms with such suggestive decorations. At first glance, it seemed similar to the hotel rooms explained by the anonymous relationship advice blogger he followed.
Pei Mingzhan hesitated to speak but noticed Zhao Yao’s interest in the room. “What do you mean?”
Zhao Yao picked up his phone and started searching through the previous travel guide. He found the blogger’s recommended couple’s suite and handed Pei Mingzhan the corresponding Weibo post. “It’s this Weibo post. Take a look.”
Pei Mingzhan took the phone and scrolled through various photos of hotel room interiors, all compiled into a long image. The post also included various descriptions. He zoomed out the picture and saw that the blogger who posted it was a popular influencer with millions of followers online. The Weibo post had a high daily discussion rate. When he was about to exit, he accidentally switched to the personal information page and saw Zhao Yao’s secondary Weibo account name.
It was very simple, just call it ‘A Secondary Account.’
The recent Weibo accounts visited on the home page were getting stranger one after another. He initially thought that reading relationship advice guides was refreshing enough, but he didn’t expect Zhao Yao to also follow such bloggers on Weibo.
He silently turned off the phone screen and handed it back to Zhao Yao. “So, should we change rooms?”
“Didn’t you say there are no other rooms available?” Zhao Yao walked out of the bathroom, having just observed the hotel’s bathtub. “The bed is quite big. Do you thrash around in your sleep?”
Pei Mingzhan paused. “No, I don’t.”
Since he didn’t thrash around, it wasn’t a big issue.
Following the clues provided in the blogger’s introduction, Zhao Yao continued exploring the hotel rooms. Besides the slightly suggestive room styles, there were also various paired items placed throughout the hotel.
Seeing Pei Mingzhan standing still, Zhao Yao asked, “Do you want to take a shower first?”
Pei Mingzhan replied, “You can go first.”
Zhao Yao nodded, “Okay.”
In the bathroom, there was a semi-frosted glass with blinds. Zhao Yao glanced at the condition of the glass and decided to pull down the blinds. However, the curtains could only cover half of the glass, which seemed fine. He took his clothes and went inside.
The suite is divided into smaller rooms, and when Pei Mingzhan is sitting in the bedroom, he can catch a glimpse of the glass door at the entrance of the compartment.
Soon, the sound of the shower could be heard from the bathroom, and a faint silhouette could be seen behind the glass. Although it was mostly covered by the half-closed curtain, the body outline was still visible. The lighting in the room created a strange atmosphere, and Pei Mingzhan’s gaze slightly darkened. He took off his coat and placed it on a nearby chair, and his peripheral vision couldn’t help but glance towards the direction of the bathroom.
When the front desk mentioned the availability of the king suite, he should have considered this possibility.
At that moment, his phone rang, and Pei Mingzhan snapped back to reality, walking to the window balcony to answer the call.
It was his agent and manager, Brother Lao, on the other end. He started the conversation by asking, “You’re not coming back tonight? Remember to find a better hotel when you stay overnight.”
“Gu Sui’s place is quite a distance from the city center, so I found a highly-rated hotel,” Pei Mingzhan informed Brother Lao of the hotel name. “Don’t worry, this hotel prioritizes guest privacy.”
Brother Lao went online to check the hotel reviews and confirmed everything was fine before saying, “You haven’t participated in many activities lately, but you’re still a movie emperor, my friend. Although your fan base isn’t as huge as those popular stars, you still need to be careful with these matters. The front desk didn’t say anything, right?”
“No,” Pei Mingzhan replied, but halfway through his sentence, he heard a sound coming from another part of the room.
Meanwhile, Zhao Yao changed into his close-fitting sleepwear and walked out while drying his hair. “The water temperature is fine. You can go and take a shower now.”
Hearing voices from the other side of the call, Brother Lao quickly asked, “Wait, something doesn’t seem right, Lao Pei. You’re not with Mr. Zhao, are you?”
Pei Mingzhan hung up the phone. “Okay, I’ll go now.”
Even though they were only staying for one night, Uncle Wang had prepared a lot of things in the luggage.
Zhao Yao found his commonly used pack of wolfberries and started boiling water while Pei Mingzhan took a shower.
The kettle was in the outer area, and when Zhao Yao walked out, he happened to see the person showering in the bathroom. His gaze lingered for a moment.
He didn’t pay much attention when Pei Mingzhan was getting dressed earlier, but when he saw him like this, his figure was quite impressive.
Inside the bathroom, Pei Mingzhan heard the noise and asked in confusion, “Zhao Yao?”
He turned off the shower.
Zhao Yao said, “No problem, you continue showering. I’ll come out and get the kettle.”
Pei Mingzhan hesitated for a moment and said, “I have a towel in my suitcase. Can you help me get it?”
“Sure,” Zhao Yao responded and walked to the inner area to search Pei Mingzhan’s luggage.
There wasn’t much in the suitcase besides a few clothes and toiletries, with only the charging cable for a notebook. After taking the towel, Zhao Yao helped close the suitcase and walked over. “Open the door.”
The sound of the shower stopped, and a wet hand reached out from behind the frosted glass door. While grabbing the towel, Pei Mingzhan accidentally touched Zhao Yao’s hand.
Behind the frosted glass, stood the tall figure in white. Zhao Yao handed him the towel and then turned around to get the kettle.
The sounds from the bathroom resumed.
As Zhao Yao walked back with the kettle, a thought suddenly struck his mind about the vague figure behind the glass earlier, and he couldn’t shake it off. When Pei Mingzhan came out, he saw that Zhao Yao had already boiled hot water. The weather outside was getting colder this month, and Zhao Yao was sitting on the edge of the bed, partly covered by the blanket, drinking water and holding a book he was reading.
Pei Mingzhan asked, “Feeling cold? Should I adjust the air conditioning temperature higher?”
“It’s fine,” Zhao Yao looked up at Pei Mingzhan. “Do you want to drink this?”
Pei Mingzhan shook his head. “No, thanks.”
He glanced at the cup and noticed a few wolfberries floating on top.
Not only was the room decor ambiguous, even the ceiling lights emitted a dim orange glow. After blow-drying his hair, Pei Mingzhan got on the bed and asked, “Have you often stayed in hotels with someone before?”
“No, this is actually my first time in this kind of suite,” Zhao Yao closed the book and replied simply, “I was quite curious, but it seems like this room is just decorated to create a certain atmosphere. It doesn’t have those things mentioned online.”
Pei Mingzhan paused as he lifted the blanket. “What else are you looking for?”
“I read in the description that occasionally these suites would have small props available for purchase by scanning QR codes,” Zhao Yao picked up his phone and searched for the article he had just read.
It was said that couples staying in hotels would often search for these small props, but only a few hotels actually provided them. With stricter management in domestic hotels, these things only existed in hotels mentioned by online users. Zhao Yao had never seen them before.
Props?
Pei Mingzhan hesitated slightly and asked, “Aren’t you reading those simple reference books? How do you know about these things?”
“I’m interested in the establishment of trust in romantic relationships. Usually, it’s a mutual choice on an emotional level, but I’ve come across another perspective that emphasizes physical compatibility as the key to love blossoming,” Zhao Yao flipped through the book and continued, “It’s a difficult matter to discuss. I lean more towards the former type of emotional interaction because the latter cannot be applied to other types of relationships.”
Pei Mingzhan suddenly asked, “Do you know what physical compatibility means?”
Zhao Yao closed the book upon hearing that and looked at Pei Mingzhan, saying, “Pei Mingzhan, I’m an adult. Do you think I wouldn’t understand consensual intimate relationships?”
Seeing him serious, Pei Mingzhan didn’t utter the words on his mind and just sighed, “Alright, you understand.”
It was still early, and Pei Mingzhan noticed that Zhao Yao was reading a common type of book that hinted at its content. One side of the blanket felt cold, but the warmth of the other side’s body temperature made it tempting to get closer.
During this period, Pei Mingzhan had been staying up late due to his work. Since he couldn’t sleep, he picked up his phone and browsed Weibo. He searched for Zhao Yao’s alternate account and quickly found the homepage.
Although it was called an alternate account, it didn’t seem like one based on the activity on Weibo.
The account had thousands of followers, and each post had at least a dozen replies, indicating that Zhao Yao frequently interacted with his followers. Besides some news articles, his Weibo homepage contained some peculiar emotional posts. Pei Mingzhan scrolled into the list of accounts he followed and indeed found a series of emotional bloggers.
There were all sorts of strange bloggers out there. Who recommended these to Zhao Yao?
Pei Mingzhan logged into his own account and clicked the follow button on Zhao Yao’s homepage.
The water next to him was warm enough, so Zhao Yao swallowed a pill with water and then tried to read his book. However, he couldn’t focus and his mind wandered to the hotel. In this dimly lit bedroom, he felt an indescribable feeling.
He had previously read a dating guide that included a detailed section on choosing a hotel for couples. However, the process of intimacy was something that came after establishing trust, so he only glanced at it briefly. But now, he couldn’t help but think that if a couple were lying on this bed, certain things might just happen naturally.
He placed the book on the bedside table and asked, “Do you have friends who are in a romantic relationship?”
Pei Mingzhan was slightly surprised by the question and closed the Weibo page on his phone. He asked, “Why do you ask?”
“I’m just curious. Let’s imagine a couple entering a hotel and arriving in this room. What would their emotional journey be like?” Zhao Yao saw that Pei Mingzhan was lying down and playing with his phone, so he also lay down. “For example, after taking a shower, when both are lying here, is it usually the man who takes the initiative?”
Zhao Yao’s movement caused the blanket to shift, and Pei Mingzhan felt the presence of another body getting closer. “It depends on their personalities.”
“Is that so?” Zhao Yao asked.
Pei Mingzhan turned his head slightly, his gaze deep as he looked at Zhao Yao. “You’re tired today, aren’t you sleepy?”
Sharing one blanket meant there would inevitably be some contact. Although the room’s air conditioning wasn’t set too low, Zhao Yao could clearly feel the warmth coming from Pei Mingzhan’s side of the blanket. He maintained an appropriate distance and replied, “I’m fine.”
It was already past 11 PM.
Pei Mingzhan got up and turned off the lights. “Sleeping in the dark helps with falling asleep. Let’s sleep now.”
Zhao Yao gently closed his eyes, but his mind was restless. He wondered if he had been overthinking things earlier. He could vividly imagine the brief descriptions of hotel experiences from anonymous online confession accounts and the curious discussions among netizens. His thoughts wandered to the warm color scheme of the room and the large bathtub in the bathroom. Finally, he imagined the blurred figure of Pei Mingzhan behind the frosted glass.
Late into the night, Pei Mingzhan couldn’t sleep.
“Zhao Yao?” he whispered, leaning closer. He could hear the soft and steady sound of breathing from the person beside him, indicating that Zhao Yao had already fallen asleep.
However, at that moment, Zhao Yao, who had been sleeping peacefully, suddenly turned over and, like a small creature seeking warmth, grabbed hold of Pei Mingzhan’s arm. The person beside him seemed to unknowingly draw closer to him, disregarding any potential danger. Pei Mingzhan could feel the warmth radiating from Zhao Yao’s body. Their hands and feet touched, but Zhao Yao continued to sleep soundly, oblivious to his actions.
Zhao Yao had asked Pei Mingzhan if he was a restless sleeper, but Pei Mingzhan hadn’t asked Zhao Yao the same question.
Pei Mingzhan opened his eyes, surrounded by darkness. The lights from the distant city outside the window cast a soft glow.
But he couldn’t find a hint of sleepiness within him…
While Zhao Yao had anticipated insomnia due to his wandering thoughts before bed, he unexpectedly fell into a deep slumber. When he woke up the next day, Pei Mingzhan was already awake and making a phone call to the front desk about breakfast. Zhao Yao had dreamed something strange in the latter half of the night, but he had stopped thinking about the online discussions. Instead, he had a peculiar dream.
In the dream, he was still delivering towels to Pei Mingzhan, but when he reached the outside of the bathroom, Pei Mingzhan pulled him inside with one hand.
When Pei Mingzhan returned after placing the breakfast order, he found Zhao Yao taking a shower in the bathroom. Shortly after, the hotel staff delivered their breakfast, and once Zhao Yao came out of the bathroom after getting ready, Pei Mingzhan said, “Let’s have breakfast first.”
When Zhao Yao saw Pei Mingzhan, he couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward. “Oh, what are we having for breakfast?”
He went over and made himself a cup of morning tea, while Pei Mingzhan had already prepared everything.
Pei Mingzhan said, “Gu Sui asked me to add you to our group chat. He will regularly update us on the progress of the platform, so we don’t need to worry about those matters. You can focus on Huihua.”
After saying that, he noticed that Zhao Yao’s gaze kept falling on his hands. Pei Mingzhan looked down at his own hand holding the chopsticks and asked, “What’s wrong? You seem distracted.”
“It’s nothing.” Zhao Yao withdrew his gaze and sounded somewhat troubled. “Pei Mingzhan, have you ever been in a romantic relationship?”
Pei Mingzhan paused for a moment with the food on his chopsticks. “Are you interested in being in one?”
Zhao Yao didn’t know how to respond, but thinking about the passionate dream he had the previous night, he could only say, “I might need to be in one.”
“Simple.” Pei Mingzhan’s gaze deepened, and he placed a cream bun into Zhao Yao’s bowl. “I’ll teach you.”
Zhao Yao’s tone was a bit unnatural. “You’ll teach me?”
“Yes, didn’t you ask if I know how?” Pei Mingzhan said, “I’ll teach you, and then you’ll know if I can or not.”
Frowning slightly, Zhao Yao asked, “Have you been in a romantic relationship before?”
Pei Mingzhan spoke frankly, “I haven’t, but I’ve acted in one.”
After hearing his response, Zhao Yao found it somewhat reasonable, although it sounded like Pei Mingzhan was joking. They didn’t bring up the topic again while having their meal. Pei Mingzhan briefly explained the matters regarding Gu Sui’s studio, and Zhao Yao occasionally chimed in. They finished breakfast quickly.
After breakfast, Pei Mingzhan accompanied Zhao Yao back home. When they arrived at the parking lot of the residential community, Zhao Yao noticed Pei Mingzhan yawning and asked curiously, “Did you not sleep well last night?”
Pei Mingzhan replied, “I couldn’t sleep well, maybe not used to the bed.”
Early in the morning, Yao Bai arrived at Zhao Yao’s house. He had received a message from Zhao Yao yesterday, informing him to come over and prepare for the follow-up matters. It was important to align their work with Gu Sui’s studio, and Zhao Yao couldn’t handle everything alone, so he had to consider expanding the team.
Yao Bai watched as Pei Mingzhan dropped Zhao Yao off at the doorstep before leaving and asked Uncle Wang in confusion, “My brother is in his twenties, but he acts like a young girl being escorted home by her boyfriend.”
Uncle Wang chuckled and said, “Mr. Pei was just being kind.”
Zhao Yao glanced at Yao Bai without saying a word. After entering the house, he went to the study and brought down some documents. He said briefly, “We discussed the team matter before. Besides Huihua, there will be other things in the future that I’ll assign to you. You’re overwhelmed with too much work alone, so I plan to have Chen Xi assist you in building a team.”
Upon hearing this, Yao Bai asked, “Brother, is the matter with the livestreaming platform confirmed?”
“Yes,” Zhao Yao handed the documents to Yao Bai. “These people listed here are quite good. I think you understand what I mean. Recruit those who can be recruited, and forget about those who can’t. Chen Xi won’t be able to help you much either. Once the team is established, you won’t be too busy with work handovers. Talk to Chen Xi about the temporary manpower you need and start by allocating some from Huihua.”
Yao Bai took on this significant responsibility, feeling both touched and afraid of disappointing his brother’s trust. “Alright, I’ll go talk to Mr. Chen about it soon. What are your plans for the future, Brother?”
“I don’t have any specific plans. I’m planning to go to the countryside with Uncle Wang for a couple of days,” Zhao Yao’s tone was calm. “I’ll leave the work matters to you all. Inform me if there are any tricky issues, and for other matters, handle them as you see fit. There are a few capable individuals in Huihua’s management team. If Chen Xi’s side has enough manpower, you can ask him for two people as well.”
“Huh?” Yao Bai was puzzled. “Are you sure you and Uncle Wang can manage? Shouldn’t I accompany you?”
He was Zhao Yao’s assistant and should be helping with these arrangements.
“No need,” Zhao Yao said. “I’m going there to relax on one hand, and on the other hand, there’s a project team from Huihua recording there. I’ll assess the situation and consider future investments. You focus on your current tasks for now.”
-*
Pei Mingzhan took the time to follow his agent to Huihua and signed a contract. After signing the contract, he left. Before leaving, he heard that Chen Xi wanted to talk to Brother Lao, so he didn’t wait and went to the company first.
When he arrived at Chen Xi’s office, Brother Lao asked, “Are you keeping me here for publicity purposes?”
Chen Xi and Brother Lao had collaborated several times before, so their conversation wasn’t overly polite. Chen Xi directly said, “If I wanted to create publicity with you, wouldn’t that be a breach of contract? Keeping you here is for a different reason.”
“Didn’t you tell me to pay attention to Mr. Zhao and Actor Pei’s situation before? It’s not right for them to constantly trend online. I couldn’t go to H City this time, so I can only inform you in advance to be prepared,” Chen Xi said simply. “Mr. Zhao has also started paying attention to ‘Youxian’ in recent days. He has expressed an interest in increasing his investment in the future, so he might go over there to assess the situation during the next recording.”
“????” Brother Lao stood up in surprise. “Really? Mr. Zhao is going on the show? I didn’t see his name on the guest list!”
Chen Xi said, “Hey, don’t get too excited. Mr. Zhao is going there to investigate the project, not to appear on the show. Aren’t you worried that fans might cause a commotion during the recording? Pay more attention at that time.”
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